Lula wins Brazil election after turning first-round loss into 4.3 million vote lead

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva secured a fourth term as president of Brazil on Sunday, defeating Flávio Bolsonaro in a runoff that reversed the first-round results from early October. With nearly 99% of ballots counted, Lula, who is 80, captured 51.75% of the vote. His 45-year-old opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro, received 48.25%.

The shift in power was driven by a change in voter turnout. Lula trailed by 2.2 million votes after the first round, when a record 21.08% of eligible voters abstained. In the second round, abstention fell to 19.21%, a drop that benefited Lula because his supporters often live farther from polling stations. The margin of victory expanded to 4.3 million votes in Lula’s favor.

No candidate in Brazilian democratic history has won a runoff after finishing second in the first round. The initial setback had left progressive voters uncertain for three weeks. Reginaldo Lopes, a key ally of Lula, described the final count as a message to the world about the extreme right. He said the country would now reorganize its democratic forces.

The result marks a major setback for the Bolsonaro family. Jair Bolsonaro, the father of the losing candidate, is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup. He is under house arrest in Brasília, where his son watched the count. Jair Bolsonaro had hoped to be freed and given a government role if his son won. The confirmation of Lula’s victory was met with anger in the capital.

The outcome also affects US President Donald Trump, who had sought to extend a line of pro-Trump leaders in Latin America. Trump had hoped Brazil would join Colombia’s Abelardo de la Espriella, Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa, Chile’s José Antonio Kast, and Argentina’s Javier Milei.

Lula’s supporters demonstrated their strength on Saturday with large rallies in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. More than a million people gathered on Copacabana beach, while an even larger crowd marched on Paulista Avenue. On Sunday evening, hundreds returned to the avenue to watch the count, waving red flags with Lula’s face. Camilo Buarque, 35, said the event proved democracy was intact.

Some voters in São Paulo remained angry over an apparent attempt to disrupt the vote. Pro-Bolsonaro politicians were accused of sabotaging public transport in areas that lean toward Lula. Lucas Lopes, 32, called the effort another coup attempt. The alleged disruption failed. Caio Marques, a 40-year-old photographer from Franca, said the left had failed in the first round but woke up in the second.