The Leftist Luis Inacio Lula da Silva defeated Balsonaro in Brazil
The leftist defeated Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro to keep Latin America’s largest democracy from joining the region’s rightward shift.
With 99.32 percent of ballots counted, Lula, who turns 81 on Tuesday, had captured 51.75 percent of the vote, electoral authorities reported.
His challenger, the 45-year-old son of imprisoned former president Jair Bolsonaro, had 48.25 percent.
Lula is Brazil’s first presidential candidate to finish second in the first round and win the runoff, and the first elected four times. He served two terms from 2003 to 2011 before returning to power in 2023.
It was unclear whether Flávio Bolsonaro would accept the defeat. His father refused to concede his loss in 2022, fled to Florida and skipped Lula’s inauguration. A week later, his supporters stormed government buildings in Brasília in a Jan. 6-style attack that prosecutors linked to a coup plot aimed at overturning the election.
With 99.32 percent of ballots counted, Lula, who turns 81 on Tuesday, had captured 51.75 percent of the vote, electoral authorities reported.
His challenger, the 45-year-old son of imprisoned former president Jair Bolsonaro, had 48.25 percent.
Lula is Brazil’s first presidential candidate to finish second in the first round and win the runoff, and the first elected four times. He served two terms from 2003 to 2011 before returning to power in 2023.
It was unclear whether Flávio Bolsonaro would accept the defeat. His father refused to concede his loss in 2022, fled to Florida and skipped Lula’s inauguration. A week later, his supporters stormed government buildings in Brasília in a Jan. 6-style attack that prosecutors linked to a coup plot aimed at overturning the election.
