Brazil’s Bolsonaro loses bid for second term in fiercely contested presidential vote

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CNN —

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is set to become the next president of Brazil, after defeating his rightwing rival, incumbent Jair Bolsonaro, by a razor-thin margin in a fiercely contested run-off election.

The leftist former leader, widely known as “Lula, ” received more than 60 million votes, the most in Brazilian history, breaking his own record from 2006.

But despite the huge turnout from his supporters, his victory was by a narrow margin – according to Brazil’s electoral authority , Lula da Silva won 50. 90% of the vote and Bolsonaro received 49. 10%, denying him a second term.

Lula supporters thronged São Paulo Avenida Paulista on Sunday evening right after polls closed. The mood was celebratory even before the results were called, with people setting off flares when he was declared winner by the country’s election authority.

Many had tears in their eyes, telling CNN that they were hopeful for the country, which has been struggling with high inflation, limited growth and rising poverty.

But others on Avenida Paulista expressed fears. Lula da Silva’s razor thin margin has raised concerns that Bolsonaro will not accept defeat, having repeatedly claimed that Brazil’s electronic ballot system is susceptible to fraud. The particular entirely unfounded allegation has drawn comparisons to the particular false election claims associated with former US President Donald Trump.

Hours after the results were announced, Bolsonaro had yet to concede defeat or make any public statement. Meanwhile, videos on social media showed his supporters had blocked highways in two states to protest against Lula da Silva’s victory.

“We will only leave once the army takes over the particular country, ” one unidentified Bolsonaro supporter said within a video taken in the southern state of Santa Catarina.

Speaking to supporters on Sunday evening, Lula da Silva thanked all Brazilians. “The people who voted for me, the people who voted for the opponent, who went to the polls, who consented to fulfill their civilizing commitment associated with citizenship, I want to congratulate you, ” he said, reported CNN Brasil.

Lula da Silva supporters thronged São Paulo Avenida Paulista on Sunday evening.

“And, above all, I want to congratulate the people who voted for me personally because I consider myself a citizen who experienced a process of resurrection in Brazilian politics because they tried to bury myself alive and I’m here, ” he added.

Lula da Silva and Bolsonaro had previously gone head to head in a first round of voting on October 2, but neither gained more than half of the votes, forcing Sunday’s runoff vote , which became a referendum on two starkly different visions for Brazil.

Tensions ahead of the vote

The election came amid a tense and polarized political climate in Brazilian.

The mood was sombre among Bolsonaro's supporters.

Both candidates had used this election to attack one another at every turn, and rising anger has overshadowed the polls and clashes among their supporters left many voters feeling fearful of what is to come. Voters in Sao Paulo told CNN that they were keen to end this election season as soon as possible so the country can move on.

While there were no reports of political violence upon Sunday, Lula da Silva allies accused the police of blocking buses plus cars carrying Lula voters from getting to voting sites. However , the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), which usually runs Brazil’s elections, said no one had been prevented from voting and declined to extend voting hours, Reuters reviews . The Federal Highway Police said they got complied with court orders, it added.

A Lula da Silva supporter waves a flag at Avenida Paulista in Sao Paulo on Sunday.

Lula da Silva has been president for two terms, from 2003 to 06\ and 2007 to 2011, where he led the country through a commodities boom that helped fund huge social welfare programs and lifted millions out of poverty.

He left office along with a 90% approval rating – a record tarnished however by Brazil’s largest corruption probe, dubbed “Operation Car Wash, ” which led to charges towards hundreds of high-ranking politicians and businesspeople across Latin America. He was convicted with regard to corruption and money laundering in 2017, but the court threw out their conviction in March 2021, clearing the way regarding his political rebound.

Bolsonaro ran intended for his first term as president in 2018 with the conservative Liberal Party, campaigning as a political outsider and anti-corruption candidate, and gaining the moniker “Trump of the Tropics. ” A divisive figure, Bolsonaro has become known for his bombastic statements and conservative agenda, which is supported by important evangelical leaders in the particular country.

During his reelection bid, Bolsonaro appealed to supporters’ moral values and sense associated with national unity, and branded his left-wing adversary while “the communist threat. ” His campaign, which adopted the slogan “God, Nation, Family, and Liberty, ” promised an intensified version of his first term: tax cuts, policies that would support the agricultural industry, reduction of environmental rules, and a continuation of his Auxilio Brasil welfare payments to the poorest.

But poverty has grown during his presidency, and his popularity levels took a hit over his handling of the pandemic, which usually he dismissed as the particular “little flu, ” prior to the virus killed more than 680, 000 individuals in the country.

Environmentalists also warned that the future of the rainforest could be at stake in this political election, as Bolsonaro’s government acquired become known for its support of ruthless exploitation associated with land in the Amazon, leading to record deforestation figures.

Leaders send their wishes

World leaders congratulated Lula da Silva on his triumph.

United States President Joe Biden known as the election “free, fair, and credible, ” saying he looked “forward in order to working together to continue the cooperation between our 2 countries in the months and years ahead. ”

Regional leaders described his win as a “time of hope. ”

“Your success opens a new time for that history of Latin America. A time of hope and future that begins today. Here you have a partner to work with and dream big about the good life of our peoples, ” President of Argentina Alberto Fernández said on Twitter.

French President Emmanuel Macron described it as “a new chapter in the history of Brazil. Together, we may join forces to face the many common challenges plus renew the bond associated with friendship between our two countries. ”

More than 156 million people were eligible to vote within this year’s election. The candidates themselves voted early on Sunday, with Lula voting at a public school in the São Paulo metro Area and Bolsonaro casting his ballot in Rio de Janeiro early on Sunday morning.