In the second round of Brazil’s presidential election, held amid extreme political polarization, the winner was 80-year-old incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a social democrat who secured 51.8% of the vote (64.2 million votes), defeating 45-year-old far-right neoliberal Flávio Bolsonaro, eldest son of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, who received 48.21% (59.8 million votes). The result ushers in yet another round of social democratic illusions about the possibility of a more humane capitalism.
Against the openly pro-US Bolsonaro, Lula presented the strategy of a section of capital that prioritizes alliances with the European Union, China and Russia as a matter of “national interest”, supposedly aimed at safeguarding the country’s natural resources and protecting the environment. Lula, who capitalizes on his working-class background as a former metalworkers’ trade unionist, has served this strategy throughout his three presidential terms to date and will continue to do so in his fourth, employing the familiar Keynesian policies at certain junctures to soften some of the sharpest edges of pro-monopoly, anti-people policies.
In his victory remarks, the re-elected President declared that he wanted to represent all 205 million Brazilians and pledged to change “the way the country is governed”.
Lula and the various social democratic and neoliberal forces supporting him are fostering a new round of illusions about “a more humane system of exploitation”. In doing so, they seek to manipulate the people by presenting themselves as a bulwark against the far right and fascism. Yet, as has repeatedly been demonstrated, these very forces pave the way for the system’s reactionary elements, exploiting the temporary weakness of revolutionary forces committed to breaking with the power of capital and the absence of a strong Communist Party.
For his part, Flávio Bolsonaro refused to recognize the election result and announced that he would seek to have the election annulled, primarily on the grounds that voting had been extended by an additional two hours in certain electoral districts — a decision he claims benefited his opponent.
According to an initial analysis of the results by the newspaper O Globo, voter turnout reached 81%, while Lula and the alliance led by his social democratic Workers’ Party performed particularly well in the poorer northeastern regions, where food-purchasing subsidy programmes are widely used, as well as in major cities such as Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Porto Alegre.
International Reactions Reflect Geopolitical Rivalries
The international reactions to Lula’s re-election are particularly revealing, especially given that Latin America has recently become a focal point of the confrontation between the United States and China over imperialist supremacy.
A potential victory for Bolsonaro, who enjoyed US support, would have further strengthened the formation of the “Shield of the Americas”, an alliance promoted by Washington with the bourgeois governments of Argentina, Chile, Peru and Colombia. This initiative forms part of US efforts to consolidate its dominance over what it calls the “Western Hemisphere”, in competition with China and Russia.
Against this backdrop, Donald Trump Jr., son of US President Donald Trump, criticized the two-hour extension of voting in the Brazilian presidential election, commenting:
“If a conservative government in Brazil did this, everyone in the mainstream media in America would lose their minds, but I guess they just choose to remain silent because it’s all being done for the cause.”
Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Russian President, stated that Lula “does a great deal not only to develop bilateral relations, but also to advance processes within BRICS and other organizations, as well as cooperation with Russia at the international level”.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun congratulated Lula, declaring that “China is ready to work with Brazil to further advance the building of a China–Brazil community with a shared future”.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in a post on X, stated, among other things, that “Europe’s partnership with Brazil is flourishing” and that cooperation between Brazil and the imperialist alliance would continue in pursuit of “free and open trade. A rules-based global order. And strong ambitions for our climate.”
Several Latin American presidents also expressed, through posts on X, their desire to continue cooperation with Brazil.
Peruvian President K. Fujimori spoke of strengthening the strategic alliance between the two countries, as well as promoting “the integration, cooperation and sustainable development of the Amazon that we share”.
Similar messages were issued by Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, Paraguayan President Santiago Peña and Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi.
In Argentina, former President Cristina Kirchner congratulated Lula on his victory, while the country’s incumbent far-right President Javier Milei has yet to comment.
In his victory remarks, the re-elected President declared that he wanted to represent all 205 million Brazilians and pledged to change “the way the country is governed”.
Lula and the various social democratic and neoliberal forces supporting him are fostering a new round of illusions about “a more humane system of exploitation”. In doing so, they seek to manipulate the people by presenting themselves as a bulwark against the far right and fascism. Yet, as has repeatedly been demonstrated, these very forces pave the way for the system’s reactionary elements, exploiting the temporary weakness of revolutionary forces committed to breaking with the power of capital and the absence of a strong Communist Party.
For his part, Flávio Bolsonaro refused to recognize the election result and announced that he would seek to have the election annulled, primarily on the grounds that voting had been extended by an additional two hours in certain electoral districts — a decision he claims benefited his opponent.
According to an initial analysis of the results by the newspaper O Globo, voter turnout reached 81%, while Lula and the alliance led by his social democratic Workers’ Party performed particularly well in the poorer northeastern regions, where food-purchasing subsidy programmes are widely used, as well as in major cities such as Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Porto Alegre.
International Reactions Reflect Geopolitical Rivalries
The international reactions to Lula’s re-election are particularly revealing, especially given that Latin America has recently become a focal point of the confrontation between the United States and China over imperialist supremacy.
A potential victory for Bolsonaro, who enjoyed US support, would have further strengthened the formation of the “Shield of the Americas”, an alliance promoted by Washington with the bourgeois governments of Argentina, Chile, Peru and Colombia. This initiative forms part of US efforts to consolidate its dominance over what it calls the “Western Hemisphere”, in competition with China and Russia.
Against this backdrop, Donald Trump Jr., son of US President Donald Trump, criticized the two-hour extension of voting in the Brazilian presidential election, commenting:
“If a conservative government in Brazil did this, everyone in the mainstream media in America would lose their minds, but I guess they just choose to remain silent because it’s all being done for the cause.”
Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Russian President, stated that Lula “does a great deal not only to develop bilateral relations, but also to advance processes within BRICS and other organizations, as well as cooperation with Russia at the international level”.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun congratulated Lula, declaring that “China is ready to work with Brazil to further advance the building of a China–Brazil community with a shared future”.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, in a post on X, stated, among other things, that “Europe’s partnership with Brazil is flourishing” and that cooperation between Brazil and the imperialist alliance would continue in pursuit of “free and open trade. A rules-based global order. And strong ambitions for our climate.”
Several Latin American presidents also expressed, through posts on X, their desire to continue cooperation with Brazil.
Peruvian President K. Fujimori spoke of strengthening the strategic alliance between the two countries, as well as promoting “the integration, cooperation and sustainable development of the Amazon that we share”.
Similar messages were issued by Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, Paraguayan President Santiago Peña and Uruguayan President Yamandú Orsi.
In Argentina, former President Cristina Kirchner congratulated Lula on his victory, while the country’s incumbent far-right President Javier Milei has yet to comment.