Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva secured a historic fourth term on Sunday, defeating right-wing Senator Flávio Bolsonaro in a tightly contested presidential runoff.
With nearly all votes counted, Lula obtained about 51.8 percent of valid ballots against roughly 48.2 percent for Bolsonaro, a margin of more than four million votes, according to the Superior Electoral Court.
The 80-year-old leftist becomes the first Brazilian president elected to the office four times and the first candidate since the return of direct elections in 1989 to win the presidency after finishing second in the first round. Bolsonaro had led that earlier vote on October 4 with 47.03 percent to Lula’s 45.16 percent.
Flávio Bolsonaro, the eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro and an ally of US President Donald Trump, refused to concede defeat. He said he would seek to have the result annulled, citing a last-minute Supreme Court decision that extended voting by two hours.
Both campaigns had requested the extension — Lula’s team citing transport problems for voters and Bolsonaro’s pointing to heavy rain — but the late ruling caused confusion at some polling stations.
The race was dominated by concerns over the cost of living, crime and corruption against a backdrop of a broader rightward political shift across Latin America. Lula’s victory keeps Latin America’s largest economy on a more independent foreign-policy path focused on ties with the Global South and China.
Trump said he was monitoring the runoff but stopped short of formally endorsing either candidate, though he had earlier praised Flávio Bolsonaro’s first-round performance.
