BRAZIL DECIDES 2022


 

President Jair Bolsonaro

A climate of fear and tension seem to have eclipsed Brazil, Latin America’s largest country and one of the oldest democracies in the world. Slated for Sunday, October 2nd 2022, the 2022 general election in Brazil will not only go down as one of the most polarized elections in the history of the country, but will also define the direction the country would be headed for the next four years.

It is estimated that about 156 million registered voters would be eligible to participate in the general election. In addition to electing the President and Vice-President, Brazilians will also elect a third of the senate, all 513 members of the House of Deputies, State Governors and State Legislators. There are 11 candidates running for President, however, right-wing incumbent President, Jair Bolsonaro, 67 and left-wing former President, Luiz Inacio “Lula” da Silva, 76, stand out as the two clear front-runners.

Former President Luiz Inacio “Lula” da Silva, is no doubt a charismatic politician who has served two terms between 2003 to 2010 and currently seeks a third term. A poor metal worker with a humble beginning, Lula’s presidency is often remembered for massive social welfare programs and regional boom that lifted millions out of poverty. In April 2018 he was convicted of corruption and imprisoned but released by Brazil’s Supreme Court order in November 2019 and conviction later annulled in April 2021.

 

Former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

Incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro, a former army captain and congressman, came to power in 2018 promising to fight corruption and develop the economy. An ally of former US President Donald Trump, he is accused, like his friend of mismanaging the corona virus – dismissing it, promoting its unproven treatment with hydroxychloroquine as well as discouraging the use of vaccines in a country where more than 685,000 persons have died of the deadly virus.

Former President Lula seems to have made a strong come-back. In his characteristic charismatic style, he has built a broad coalition, and nominated one of his former political rivals and a center-right former governor of Sao Paulo, Geraldo Alckmin to be his running mate. The first round of the election is scheduled for Sunday, October 2nd, 2022 while a second round is also fixed for October 30th 2022 if no candidate secures 50 percent of all votes cast. However, opinion polls suggest that former President Lula could win outright in the first round.

While former President Lula has carried himself with the decorum of a statesman, President Jair Bolsonaro’s utterances, rhetoric and body language seem to indicate that he might not accept defeat if he loses at the polls. That portends great danger for one of the world’s largest democracies.

For President Jair Bolsonaro, this election is a fight to the death and former President Lula is the candidate to beat. Whether he will make good on his threat of a January 6-type insurrection or a coup largely remains at the realm of speculation. One thing is certain, it is that time of the year when Brazilians decide who will lead them for the next four years and neither Lula nor Bolsonaro can change the outcome of this historic election.

                           


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