Lula da Silva was elected President of Brazil for the 4th time

Lula da Silva elected President of Brazil for the 4th time

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the second round of the presidential election in Brazil, the Supreme Electoral Court of the country reported.

For the 81-year-old Lula da Silva, this will be his fourth presidential term.

According to the results of the second round, he received 51.79 percent of the vote. His opponent, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, secured 48.21 percent of the vote.

64.2 million voters voted for Lula da Silva, and 59.8 million for Bolsonaro. The margin between the candidates was nearly 4.5 million votes.

After the votes were counted, Bolsonaro refused to concede defeat and demanded the annulment of the election results due to the Brazil Supreme Court's decision to extend the voting time by two hours.

The first round of the election in Brazil was held on October 4, 2026. According to its results, none of the presidential candidates received more than 50 percent of the vote. At the same time, Bolsonaro garnered nearly 47 percent of the vote, putting him ahead of Lula by a two-percentage-point margin. This was the first instance in Brazil's history where a candidate who lost in the first round won in the second round.

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is currently serving a 27-year prison sentence. In September 2025, the Supreme Court found him guilty of five crimes, including organizing a coup d'état and attempting to violently overthrow the democratic regime following his defeat in the 2022 election. Bolsonaro did not plead guilty.

Lula da Silva represents the Workers' Party, which is considered center-left and social-democratic. He was previously elected President of Brazil three times — in 2002, 2006, and 2022.

It is noted that when Lula da Silva began his third term, he swore that it would be his last.

Even supporters of his party admit that significantly more was achieved during his first two terms — the period from January 2003 to December 2010.

He was widely recognized for lifting millions of people out of poverty through a direct cash assistance program called Bolsa Família, and held a record approval rating of over 80 percent when he left office on January 1, 2011.

However, in subsequent years, his political career faced severe trials: he was accused of corruption and imprisoned for over 18 months, being released in November 2019.

In 2021, these charges were annulled, allowing Lula to run for president in the 2022 election; he defeated Jair Bolsonaro in that election.

He remains an influential figure in left-wing politics, but although supporters praised him before the 2022 election for his commitment to preserving the rainforests, calling him the "savior of the Amazon," some environmentalists are criticizing some of his recent actions.

In particular, his support for offshore oil exploration drilling near the mouth of the Amazon River has drawn sharp objections.

Lula, for his part, emphasizes his commitment to the complete phase-out of fossil fuels, stating that oil revenues are of decisive importance in financing Brazil's transition to clean energy.