BRASILIA: Brazil’s leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was re-elected against all expectations on Sunday, but his conservative rival Flavio Bolsonaro refused to accept the loss and said he would seek to have the vote annulled.
Lula’s dramatic comeback meant Brazil had not followed Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru, all backed by US President Donald Trump, in swinging to the right.
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen hailed Lula’s re-election as a triumph for “democracy and multilateralism”, joining a slew of world leaders who welcomed the leftist figurehead’s return for an unprecedented fourth term.
But US President Donald Trump alleged that Brazil’s elections were “rigged” and “so corrupt”.
Trump alleges Brazil’s elections were ‘rigged’ and ‘corrupt’
“It looked terrible to me,” Trump told reporters when asked about the election result.
“I didn’t take sides, but it looked like another rigged election frankly. It was a terrible look for the world.”
Lula, who turns 81 on Tuesday, defied projections to defeat Bolsonaro, a senator and the son of jailed former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, and win an unprecedented fourth term.
According to official results, he won 51.8 percent of the votes to 48.2pc for Flavio Bolsonaro, with Lula pulling around 4.4 million more votes.
Lula was warmly congratulated by the leaders of left-wing governments across Central America, including Mexico, Cuba and Venezuela. “Long live democracy, the people of Brazil won,” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on X.
Right-wing governments in Chile, Ecuador and Peru said they wanted to work towards common goals with the region’s economic powerhouse.
‘Ensuring democracy’
Fireworks and vuvuzelas rang out in Rio de Janeiro, while thousands of people dressed in red, the colour of Lula’s Workers’ Party, streamed into the streets of Sao Paulo to celebrate. “People went to vote because we managed to convince them that voting was very important for ensuring democracy in the country,” Lula said in his first comments after the win.
Sunday’s vote was marked by confusion after a Supreme Court ruling extended voting by two hours because some polling stations had already closed. The move came at the request of Lula, who complained that buses had been pulled from circulation in various cities, barring citizens from voting.
Flavio Bolsonaro also requested an extension in some regions due to heavy rains, but he described the decision as “unacceptable” and a “dirty trick.” “It is impossible to recognise the results. I am going to request the annulment of these elections,” he said, stone-faced, in a brief speech in Brasilia.
Lula fights back
Brazil’s left swung into action with massive rallies after Lula’s first-round defeat, declaring “Never Again Bolsonaro” and revamping their social media strategy. Julio Canelo, 42, a lawyer celebrating in Rio de Janeiro hailed a victory for “the entire democratic spectrum.” “It was the result of the people mobilizing, in the streets and online,” he said.
A fierce social media battle drew in Meta, parent company of WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram, which Lula’s campaign accused of favouring his opponent with “algorithmic manipulation.” Meta denied this but acknowledged that some of Lula’s campaign ads had been mistakenly deactivated due to technical errors.
Published in Dawn, October 27th, 2026
