Lula da Silva victorious in Brazil election

Luiz Inácio da Silva has won Brazil’s presidential election, defeating incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro.

In an election that pundits called the most heated in the country’s more than two-decade love affair with democracy.

According to the country’s election authority, Lula secured 50.8 percent of the vote compared with 49.2 percent for Bolsonaro on Sunday.

“First of all, I’d like to thank all the comrades that are here with me. We had a fight with the machine of the state, not just a candidate, who tried to block us from winning this election. For everyone who went to vote, I want to thank you,” Lula, 77, told a cheering crowd of supporters.

Bolsonaro had been leading throughout the first half of the vote count and, as soon as Lula overtook him, cars in the streets of downtown Sao Paulo began honking their horns.

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People in the streets of Rio de Janeiro’s Ipanema neighbourhood could be heard shouting, “It turned!”

“He’s the best for the poor, especially in the countryside,” said retired government worker Luiz Carlos Gomes, 65, who hails from Maranhao state in the poor northeast region. “We were always starving before him.”

Al-jazeera reported that this year’s presidential election is Brazil’s most polarised election since its return to democracy, with Lula, a former union leader, defeating Bolsonaro, a former army captain.

Many were unsure if Bolsonaro would concede defeat after he criticised the voting system as fraud-prone, following the example of his mentor, ex-US President Donald Trump.

Who is Luiz Inácio da Silva

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, born October 27, 1945, is known briefly as “Lula”. He is a Brazilian politician and former unionist who is the president-elect of Brazil after defeating incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro in a fiercely polarized election.

With this victory, he will become the 39th president of Brazil in 2023. He founded the left-wing Workers’ Party (PT) and ran unsuccessfully for president three times before achieving victory in the 2002 Brazilian general election.

Lula introduced some widely popular social programmes such as Bolsa Familia and Fome Zero that helped many working-class families get out of poverty.

As president, Lula played a prominent role in international matters, including activities related to the nuclear programme of Iran and climate change, being described as “a man with audacious ambitions to alter the balance of power among nations”.

Despite his popularism policies, which are credited with being responsible for putting the country among the fastest growing economies in the world, Lula was plagued with corruption scandals, notably the Mensalao scandal and Escandaio dos Sanguessugas in his first term.

His achievement of lifting many out of poverty and the recklessness of President Bolsonaro are what has perhaps helped Lula return to the number one position in Brazil.