Lula Re-elected After Two-Hour Poll Extension
Brazil's president took 51.79 percent of the vote against Flávio Bolsonaro, who has refused to accept the result.
By Marco Vargas ·
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won a second consecutive term on Sunday, taking 51.79 percent of the vote against Flávio Bolsonaro's 48.21 percent. The gap between the two candidates was 4.4 million votes. Supreme Court President Kassio Nunes Marques confirmed the count and said the voting extension did not affect the electoral process.
Polling stations were kept open for two hours on Sunday evening after both campaigns filed requests. Lula's team cited a shortage of buses in São Paulo and Bahia; Bolsonaro's campaign pointed to heavy rain in southern Brazil and São Paulo. The Supreme Court issued its decision as stations were scheduled to close, and some had already shut and could not reopen.
The result reversed the first round on 4 October, when Bolsonaro led with 47 percent against Lula's 45 percent. Lula's campaign then focused on turnout after 33 million people abstained in round one. Sunday recorded the largest drop in abstention between the first and second rounds of a presidential race since 1989.
Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, called the outcome 'inexplicable' and 'impossible' and asked for it to be annulled. Fernando Neisser of the Institute of Lawyers of São Paulo said annulment would be 'difficult from a legal standpoint' given the margin. Alberto Rollo noted that election dates are fixed by the constitution, adding another obstacle to any challenge.
Lula, who turns 81 on Tuesday, addressed supporters in São Paulo. 'This, my fourth term, will be the best of any president in the history of this country,' he said. Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin told him: 'You, for the second time, have saved Brazilian democracy.' Bolsonaro supporters left their watch party in Brasília without a speech from their candidate.
Lula previously served two terms from January 2003 to December 2010 and returned in January 2023. His new term runs to 2030 and begins on 5 January. In his speech he said Brazil 'will not accept being anyone's backyard', referring to what Donald Trump has called the 'Donroe Doctrine'. Jair Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence after a coup conviction related to the 2022 election.
World leaders reacted to the result. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said 'democracy and multilateralism' had won. Ecuador's Daniel Noboa Azin said the region has 'common enemies, shared challenges'. South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa called it a win for the 'global south and progressive forces throughout the world'.
Source: BBC News
