Lula takes 4.3 million lead to win fourth term

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated Flávio Bolsonaro by 4.3 million votes in the Brazilian runoff held on Sunday. With 99% of the count completed, Lula secured 51.75% of the vote against 48.25% for the 45-year-old challenger. This margin erased a 2.2 million vote deficit that Lula carried into the second round in early October.

A shift in voter turnout drove the reversal. Abstention dropped to 19.21% in the runoff, down from a record 21.08% in the first round. Lula’s supporters argued that their base, often located farther from polling stations, returned to the polls in higher numbers. Reginaldo Lopes, a senior ally, described the result as a message to the world and said the country would now reorganize its democratic forces.

The victory marks a first since Brazil returned to democracy in the 1980s. No candidate who finished second in the first round had previously won the runoff. Lula, who turns 81 on Tuesday, had lost three prior presidential bids before becoming president in 2002. He won again in 2022 against Jair Bolsonaro, the father of this year’s defeated candidate.

The loss represents a major setback for the Bolsonaro family. Jair Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup while under house arrest in Brasília. He had expected a government role if his son won. His supporters in the capital reacted with anger as the count confirmed the defeat. The result also disappointed US President Donald Trump, who had hoped Brazil would join a bloc of allied leaders in Latin America.

Crowds gathered in major cities to mark the outcome. Over one million people attended rallies on Copacabana beach in Rio and Paulista Avenue in São Paulo on Saturday. On Sunday evening, supporters returned to watch the count, waving red flags. In São Paulo, residents expressed anger over an attempt by pro-Bolsonaro politicians to sabotage public transport in Lula-leaning areas. The disruption effort did not change the result.