Following the first round of Brazil's presidential election on October 4, the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB) and the Revolutionary Brazilian Communist Party (PCBR) have called for a vote for social-democrat Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva against Flávio Bolsonaro in the October 25 runoff.
Both parties stress, however, that their electoral position does not imply political support for Lula's social-democratic Workers' Party (PT) or its governing programme.
In a statement issued on October 6, following a meeting of its Central Committee, the PCBR explained that its decision was determined by the need to defeat Bolsonarism while maintaining complete political independence from the PT-led Broad Front.
The Party argues that neither presidential candidate represents the historical interests of the working class, although their respective victories would create different conditions for workers' organization and resistance. Defending its support for independent revolutionary candidacies in the first round, the PCBR insists that the struggle against capitalism cannot be reduced to the electoral confrontation between the PT-led alliance and Bolsonarism.
The revolutionary communists criticize Lula's social-liberal policies, concessions to monopoly capital and alliances with sections of the bourgeoisie, arguing that such policies have failed to address the conditions that allow reactionary forces to strengthen. The experience of previous PT administrations, they maintain, demonstrates the limitations of seeking lasting social progress through the management of capitalism.
“We must strike together at this moment, but always march separately,” the PCBR declares, calling for a united electoral struggle against Bolsonarism without expressing political confidence in Lula's coalition. The Party also intends to strengthen independent working-class organization and advance demands such as the abolition of the six-day working week.
For its part, the PCB, which contested the first round with its own presidential candidate, Edmilson Costa, announced its support for Lula's second-round candidacy in an October 6 statement entitled Now It's Lula!
In a subsequent statement issued on October 9, the PCB described the first-round results as a serious setback for popular forces, pointing to the growing influence of the far right, including among sections of the working class.
According to the PCB, this development reflects, in part, the consequences of class collaboration and social-liberal policies that have prioritized concessions to big business, financial capital and conservative interests over the demands of working people.
The Party therefore calls for a second-round campaign rooted in workers' concrete needs, including higher wages, shorter working hours, public healthcare, education, housing and national sovereignty, rather than attempts to reassure financial markets. It also emphasizes the importance of rebuilding communist influence in workplaces, working-class neighborhoods, schools and universities.
Despite their different political approaches, the PCB and PCBR have thus converged on the same immediate electoral objective: defeating Bolsonaro while refusing to subordinate their organizations and programmes to Lula's social-democratic coalition.
For both parties, the runoff is a tactical electoral battle, not a resolution of Brazil's deeper class contradictions. Their statements make clear that the struggle for independent working-class organization will continue beyond October 25, regardless of the election's outcome.
The Party argues that neither presidential candidate represents the historical interests of the working class, although their respective victories would create different conditions for workers' organization and resistance. Defending its support for independent revolutionary candidacies in the first round, the PCBR insists that the struggle against capitalism cannot be reduced to the electoral confrontation between the PT-led alliance and Bolsonarism.
The revolutionary communists criticize Lula's social-liberal policies, concessions to monopoly capital and alliances with sections of the bourgeoisie, arguing that such policies have failed to address the conditions that allow reactionary forces to strengthen. The experience of previous PT administrations, they maintain, demonstrates the limitations of seeking lasting social progress through the management of capitalism.
“We must strike together at this moment, but always march separately,” the PCBR declares, calling for a united electoral struggle against Bolsonarism without expressing political confidence in Lula's coalition. The Party also intends to strengthen independent working-class organization and advance demands such as the abolition of the six-day working week.
For its part, the PCB, which contested the first round with its own presidential candidate, Edmilson Costa, announced its support for Lula's second-round candidacy in an October 6 statement entitled Now It's Lula!
In a subsequent statement issued on October 9, the PCB described the first-round results as a serious setback for popular forces, pointing to the growing influence of the far right, including among sections of the working class.
According to the PCB, this development reflects, in part, the consequences of class collaboration and social-liberal policies that have prioritized concessions to big business, financial capital and conservative interests over the demands of working people.
The Party therefore calls for a second-round campaign rooted in workers' concrete needs, including higher wages, shorter working hours, public healthcare, education, housing and national sovereignty, rather than attempts to reassure financial markets. It also emphasizes the importance of rebuilding communist influence in workplaces, working-class neighborhoods, schools and universities.
Despite their different political approaches, the PCB and PCBR have thus converged on the same immediate electoral objective: defeating Bolsonaro while refusing to subordinate their organizations and programmes to Lula's social-democratic coalition.
For both parties, the runoff is a tactical electoral battle, not a resolution of Brazil's deeper class contradictions. Their statements make clear that the struggle for independent working-class organization will continue beyond October 25, regardless of the election's outcome.
