President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has recast Brazil’s runoff campaign as a defense of national sovereignty, pointing to U.S. tariffs and alleging foreign interference as he trails Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro.
Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court (TSE) said Bolsonaro received 47.03% of valid votes in the Oct. 4 first round, while Lula received 45.16%, with 99.99% of ballot boxes counted. The result left Lula with a first-round deficit ahead of the Oct. 25 vote. Lula, who served as president from 2003 to 2010 and returned to office in 2023, is seeking a fourth, nonconsecutive term.
At the U.N. General Assembly in September, Lula said, “Brazil does not fit in anyone’s backyard.” The U.N. transcript records him warning of foreign interference in electoral processes. Reuters described sovereignty as the defining message of Lula’s final campaign push.
Lula’s case also links trade policy with political ties. Reuters reported that at the candidates’ first debate, he cited meetings between the Bolsonaro family and U.S. President Donald Trump in May, before the United States imposed new tariffs on Brazilian goods. Lula has alleged the tariffs were part of a plan to influence the election. The Bolsonaro family disputes that charge, while the U.S. State Department has rejected earlier allegations of election interference, Reuters reported.
Lula’s campaign also accused Meta of manipulating social media shortly before the vote. Reuters reported that Meta attributed service problems to technical glitches affecting its services globally and denied political bias.
Reuters noted that Lula staged a comeback in 2022 after a corruption conviction was overturned. He had spent 580 days in prison in 2018 and 2019 before defeating Jair Bolsonaro.
Another debate is scheduled for Oct. 23. The TSE has scheduled the runoff for Sunday, Oct. 25.
