BRAZIL!!!!!

mickeyrat

https://apnews.com/article/jair-bolsonaro-religion-caribbean-voting-ed2130a095ca42ff1be324a3dea9f355

 

Jair Bolsonaro Brazil Sao Paulo Climate and environment Government and politics

Lula defeats Bolsonaro to again become Brazil's president

By MAURICIO SAVERESE and DIANE JEANTET

10 mins ago

SAO PAULO (AP) — Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has done it again: Twenty years after first winning the Brazilian presidency, the leftist defeated incumbent Jair Bolsonaro Sunday in an extremely tight election that marks an about-face for the country after four years of far-right politics.

With more than 99% of the votes tallied in the runoff vote, da Silva had 50.9% and Bolsonaro 49.1%, and the election authority said da Silva’s victory was a mathematical certainty.

It is a stunning reversal for da Silva, 77, whose 2018 imprisonment over a corruption scandal sidelined him from the 2018 election that brought Bolsonaro, a defender of conservative social values, to power.

Da Silva is promising to govern beyond his leftist Workers’s Party. He wants to bring in centrists and even some leaning to the right who voted for him for the first time, and to restore the country’s more prosperous past. Yet he faces headwinds in a politically polarized society where economic growth is slowing and inflation is soaring.

His victory marks the first time since Brazil’s 1985 return to democracy that the sitting president has failed to win reelection. The highly polarized election in Latin America's biggest economy extended a wave of recent leftist victories in the region, including Chile, Colombia and Argentina.

---

JAIR BOLSONARO

Bolsonaro seizes on Brazil's soccer glory during election

Brazil's Bolsonaro, Lula make final appeals for votes

Brazil president makes Argentina a campaign boogeyman

Amazon governor revokes forest protection in re-election bid

Da Silva's inauguration is scheduled to take place on Jan. 1. He last served as president from 2003-2010.

It was the country's closest election in over three decades. Just over 2 million votes separated the two candidates with 99.5% of the vote counted. The previous closest race, in 2014, was decided by a margin of 3.46 million votes.

Thomas Traumann, an independent political analyst, compared the results to U.S. President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory, saying da Silva is inheriting an extremely divided nation.

“The huge challenge that Lula has will be to pacify the country,” he said. “People are not only polarized on political matters, but also have different values, identity and opinions. What’s more, they don’t care what the other side’s values, identities and opinions are.”

Bolsonaro had been leading throughout the first half of the count and, as soon as da Silva overtook him, cars in the streets of downtown Sao Paulo began honking their horns. People in the streets of Rio de Janeiro’s Ipanema neighborhood could be heard shouting, “It turned!”

Brazilians began voting Sunday in a polarizing presidential runoff election pitting far-right President Jair Bolsonaro against his political nemesis, former leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Da Silva’s headquarters in downtown Sao Paulo hotel only erupted once the final result was announced, underscoring the tension that was a hallmark of this race.

“Four years waiting for this,” said Gabriela Souto, one of the few supporters allowed in due to heavy security.

Outside Bolsonaro’s home in Rio de Janeiro, ground-zero for his support base, a woman atop a truck delivered a prayer over a speaker, then sang excitedly, trying to generate some energy. But supporters decked out in the green and yellow of the flag barely responded. Many perked up when the national anthem played, singing along loudly with hands over their hearts.

Most opinion polls before the election gave a lead to da Silva, universally known as Lula, though political analysts agreed the race grew increasingly tight in recent weeks.

For months, it appeared that da Silva was headed for easy victory as he kindled nostalgia for his presidency, when Brazil’s economy was booming and welfare helped tens of millions join the middle class.

But while da Silva topped the Oct. 2 first-round elections with 48% of the vote, Bolsonaro was a strong second at 43%, showing opinion polls significantly underestimated his popularity. Many Brazilians support Bolsonaro’s defense of conservative social values and he shored up support in an election year with vast government spending.

Bolsonaro’s administration has been marked by incendiary speech, his testing of democratic institutions, his widely criticized handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the worst deforestation in the Amazon rainforest in 15 years. But he has built a devoted base by defending conservative values and presenting himself as protection from leftist policies that he says infringe on personal liberties and produce economic turmoil.

Da Silva is credited with building an extensive social welfare program during his 2003-2010 tenure that helped lift tens of millions into the middle class as well as presiding over an economic boom. The man universally known as Lula left office with an approval rating above 80%; then U.S. President Barack Obama called him “the most popular politician on Earth.”

But he is also remembered for his administration’s involvement in vast corruption revealed by sprawling investigations. Da Silva’s arrest in 2018 kept him out of that year’s race against Bolsonaro, a fringe lawmaker at the time who was an outspoken fan of former U.S. President Donald Trump.

Da Silva was jailed for for 580 days for corruption and money laundering. His convictions were later annulled by Brazil’s top court, which ruled the presiding judge had been biased and colluded with prosecutors. That enabled da Silva to run for the nation’s highest office for the sixth time.

For months, it appeared that he was headed for easy victory as he kindled nostalgia for his presidency, when the economy was booming and welfare helped tens of millions join the middle class. But results from an Oct. 2 first-round vote — da Silva got 48% and Bolsonaro 43% — showed opinion polls had significantly underestimated Bolsonaro’s resilience and popularity. He shored up support, in part, with vast government spending.

Da Silva has pledged to boost spending on the poor, reestablish relationships with foreign governments and take bold action to eliminate illegal clear-cutting in the Amazon rainforest.

He hasn’t provided specific plans on how he will achieve those goals, and faces many challenges. The president-elect will be confronted by strong opposition from conservative lawmakers likely to take their cues from Bolsonaro.

Carlos Melo, a political science professor at Insper University in Sao Paulo, compared the likely political climate to that experienced by former President Dilma Rousseff, da Silva’s hand-picked successor after his second term.

“Lula’s victory means Brazil is trying to overcome years of turbulence since the reelection of President Dilma Rousseff in 2014. That election never ended; the opposition asked for a recount, she governed under pressure and was impeached two years later,” said Melo. “The divide became huge and then made Bolsonaro.”

Unemployment this year has fallen to its lowest level since 2015 and, although overall inflation has slowed during the campaign, food prices are increasing at a double-digit rate. Bolsonaro’s welfare payments helped many Brazilians get by, but da Silva has been presenting himself as the candidate more willing to sustain aid going forward and raise the minimum wage.

Da Silva has also pledged to put a halt to illegal deforestation in the Amazon, and once again has prominent environmentalalist Marina Silva by his side, years after a public falling out when she was his environment minister. The president-elect has already pledged to install a ministry for Brazil’s orginal peoples, which will be run by an Indigenous person.

In April, he tapped center-right Geraldo Alckmin, a former rival, to be his running mate. It was another key part of an effort to create a broad, pro-democracy front to not just unseat Bolsonaro, but to make it easier to govern. Da Silva mended also has drawn support from Sen. Simone Tebet, a moderate who finished in third place in the election’s first round.

“If Lula manages to talk to voters who didn’t vote for him, which Bolsonaro never tried, and seeks negotiated solutions to the economic, social and political crisis we have, and links with other nations that were lost, then he could reconnect Brazil to a time in which people could disagree and still get some things done,” Melo said.

___

Carla Bridi contributed to this report from Brasilia.

josevolution

That is stunning! Has Bolsonaro conceded yet 

mickeyrat

josevolution said:

That is stunning! Has Bolsonaro conceded yet 

not in the articles I have seen.

gimmesometruth27

josevolution said:

That is stunning! Has Bolsonaro conceded yet 

this is 2022. nobody on the right concedes when they lose.

cblock4life

gimmesometruth27 said:

josevolution said:

That is stunning! Has Bolsonaro conceded yet 

this is 2022. nobody on the right concedes when they lose.

And to think FF trump will get all the credit for coming up with a new way to win!  

mickeyrat

gimmesometruth27 said:

josevolution said:

That is stunning! Has Bolsonaro conceded yet 

this is 2022. nobody on the right concedes when they lose.

most of his high level supporters have already acknowledged the loss. military has privately said no shenanigans...

Lerxst1992

Coming to an America near you

https://www.businessinsider.com/ali-alexander-calls-for-brazilian-military-coup-bolsonaro-defeat-2022-10?international=true&r=US&IR=T



Ali Alexander, the far-right activist who organized the "Stop the Steal" rally held just before the Capitol riot, is now egging on discussion of a coup in Brazil, calling on the Brazilian military to intervene in the election defeat of Trump ally Jair Bolsonaro.

Gern Blansten

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1586869114370494464

Halifax2TheMax

Steve O’s boy:

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A Polish journalist who described a U.S. conservative activist as part of a global war against democracy by right-wing actors with indirect ties to Russia has won a years-long legal battle with the American.

Matthew Tyrmand, an American with Polish roots, has written for Breitbart and is a board member of the organization Project Veritas, which carries out undercover stings against media organizations seeking to expose what it believes is left-wing bias. 

Tyrmand sued Polish journalist Tomasz Piatek and Agora, publisher of the liberal newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza, over a 2016 article that described Tyrmand as “part of the global war by the right wing against democracy” and as a supporter of Donald Trump, who was not yet the U.S. president.

https://apnews.com/article/world-news-donald-trump-europe-journalists-government-and-politics-9cb9a543a95d89b34f9a56ce8b8e6c69

gimmesometruth27

trump has already posted a video telling the people of brazil "very bad things" will happen in brazil if they do not re-elect bolsonaro. sounds familiar, no?

josevolution

Unfucking real these MAGA creeps specially Trumpolinni they need to be put away! Bannon still being able to spew in nonsense is sickening why isn’t he in jail it’s a travesty! 

static111

josevolution said:

Unfucking real these MAGA creeps specially Trumpolinni they need to be put away! Bannon still being able to spew in nonsense is sickening why isn’t he in jail it’s a travesty! 

I'm guessing because it is good for corporations and those at the highest echelons of power.  If they have people like Bannon creating divisions within the populace we will waste more energy trying to censor and classify each other rather than look at the economic and political policies that led us to this moment and who is actually benefitting from them.  Not to mention Bannon creates clicks for the big Left and Right wing media networks, what type of self respecting media finance chair would want to stop that money train?

mickeyrat

no concession, but apparently is moving toward the transition quietly....

https://apnews.com/article/jair-bolsonaro-caribbean-social-media-1661fa8ded465779ff4cefc5cbc65a18

 

Jair Bolsonaro Brazil Constitutions Brasilia Government and politics

Bolsonaro declines to concede Brazil defeat in first address

By DIANE JEANTET and CARLA BRIDI

1 hour ago

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Tuesday did not concede the election he lost to leftist Lula da Silva in a brief speech that marked his first comments since results were released two days ago.

But afterward, Chief-of-Staff Ciro Nogueira told reporters that Bolsonaro has authorized him to begin the transition process.

Bolsonaro's address didn’t mention election results, but he said he will continue to follow the rules of the nation's constitution.

“I have always been labeled as anti-democratic and, unlike my accusers, I have always played within the four lines of the constitution,” Bolsonaro, flanked by more than a dozen ministers and allies, told reporters in the official residence.

Bolsonaro lost Sunday's race by a thin margin, garnering 49.1% of the vote to da Silva’s 50.9%, according to the nation's electoral authority. It was the tightest presidential race since Brazil’s return to democracy in 1985 and marks the first time Bolsonaro has lost an election in his 34-year political career, including seven races for a seat in Congress’ Lower House.

Much like former U.S. President Donald Trump, whom Bolsonaro openly admires, the far-right incumbent has repeatedly questioned the reliability of the country’s electoral system, claiming electronic voting machines are prone to fraud. He never provided any proof, even when ordered to do so by the electoral court.

That has led many political analysts to warn that Bolsonaro appeared to be laying the groundwork to reject election results.

In recent days, and without a public statement from Bolsonaro, truck drivers and other supporters of his blocked hundreds of roads across the country. Many said the election had been fraudulent and some called for military intervention and for Congress and the Supreme Court to be disbanded.

Earlier Tuesday, Brazil's Supreme Court ordered the federal highway police to immediately clear the roads.

A majority of the court's justices backed the decision, which accuses the highway police of “omission and inertia." Failure to comply will mean its director can be fined up to 100,000 reais (more than $19,000) per hour, be removed from his duties and even face arrest. Federal prosecutors in Sao Paulo and Goias states said they had opened investigations into the blockades.

By noon Tuesday, highway police said they had removed 306 blockades, but more than 260 were still in place.

“There is no doubt that, even though he might not be directly responsible for these actions, everything he has done as president stoked this, especially questioning the electoral process and the ballots,” said Williams Gonçalves, a political science professor at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro.

"Bolsonaro is completely isolated. Everyone responsible for other institutions has already recognized the election’s results,” Gonçalves said.

In Sao Paulo — Brazil’s most populous state and largest economy — traffic jams around the international airport led to dozens of flight cancellations, with videos on social media showing travelers rolling their suitcases along the highway in the dark trying to catch their flights. The highways had been cleared by Tuesday morning, but airport officials said access remained difficult as traffic was still backed up in and out of the airport.

There, Dalmir Almeida, a 38-year-old protester, told The Associated Press that after completing three days of strikes, he and others will drive their trucks to the military barracks to ask for their support. “The army will be in our favor,” he added.

At another road block in Sao Paulo state, protesters set tires on fire. Several demonstrators were wrapped in the Brazilian flag, which has been co-opted by the nation’s conservative movement for demonstrations. Huge lines of cars could be seen snaking along the highway.

Fears of escalation grew as the country's leftist Landless Workers’ Movement, a key ally of da Silva’s that has long staged occupations of what it considers vacant or unused lands, asked its militants on Tuesday to organize demonstrations in several states to unblock roads.

Sao Paulo Gov. Rodrigo Garcia told a news conference that the time for negotiations was over, and he was not ruling out the use of force by law enforcement.

“From now on, we are going to apply what the (Supreme Court) decision determined, starting with fines of 100,000 reais per hour for each vehicle that is contributing to this obstruction," he said.

In Minas Gerais, a key battleground state in the election, a video on social media showed a protester telling a reporter from the O Tempo news outlet that the election was “fraudulent” and warned of future protests. “We won’t stop as long as we don’t have a response from our president,” he said. “We want Bolsonaro in 2023 and for the years to come."

In Itaborai, a region in Rio de Janeiro state, an Associated Press reporter saw truck drivers kneeling in front of police officers and refusing to evacuate.

Users on social media, including in multiple Telegram and WhatsApp chat groups with names like “Paralysation," shared demands that the military take the streets, or that Congress and the Supreme Court be disbanded and the president remain in office.

Following the election, the electoral authority blocked two dozen Telegram groups that defended a military coup and called on their more than 150,000 followers to organize demonstrations, according to online news site UOL.

The Supreme Court's decision on Tuesday permits regular state police forces to reinforce federal highway police, and the governors of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo states ordered them to deploy, news outlets reported. The same was done in 2018, when an 11-day trucker strike brought Brazil to a halt.

Bolsonaro commands wide support from the police forces' rank and file, however, and it wasn’t clear how effective their involvement would be. Da Silva’s Workers’ Party had accused Bolsonaro’s campaign of deploying law enforcement to create traffic jams and deter people from voting on Election Day, and video footage shared on social media showed officials stopping buses.

Alexandre de Moraes, who presides over the the nation’s electoral authority, said police checkpoints delayed voters, but didn't stop them from reaching the polls.

The 2018 stoppage caused food prices to spike and left supermarket shelves without products as gas stations ran out of fuel. It caused billions in losses and revealed the vast power that truckers possess, particularly when they organize through social media platforms.

Bolsonaro, a lawmaker at the time and months away from winning that year's presidential election, was an outspoken supporter of the truckers, who are now among his constituents. This year, his administration limited interstate fuel taxes to help bring down prices and launched a financial aid program for truckers just months before the election.

On Tuesday, dozens of journalists from both national and international news outlets remained camped outside the presidential residence in the capital, Brasilia, awaiting any sign that Bolsonaro might speak about the election or the highway blockades.

“Bolsonaro’s strategy here, so far as there is one, seems to be strategic ambiguity," said Robert Muggah, co-founder of Igarapé Institute, a Rio de Janeiro-based think tank focused on security. “He’s focused on the street, and if chaos ensues so much the better. There is a real risk that police inaction could ignite simmering tensions.”

___

Bridi reported from Brasilia. Associated Press writer David Biller contributed to this report.

brianlux

I hope Brazil stands strong and somehow helps make the whole "stop the steal" bullshit look more ridiculous and weak than it already is. These MAGA clowns are a joke.  A really bad, stupid joke.

mickeyrat

https://apnews.com/article/jair-bolsonaro-brazil-0b0e3bdcb4a0a626428d335fa560aeda

 

Jair Bolsonaro Brazil Sao Paulo Government and politics

Brazil's Bolsonaro tells Supreme Court election 'is over'

By MAURICIO SAVARESE and DIANE JEANTET

Today

SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's administration signaled a willingness to hand over power, two days after a nail-biting election loss to leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and amid speculation the far-right incumbent might fight the result.

Bolsonaro reportedly told members of Brazil's Supreme Court Tuesday that his election battle against da Silva has come to an end. Earlier, in a brief speech at the presidential palace, he said: “I have always played within the four lines of the constitution,” although he stopped short of conceding.

After a private meeting with Bolsonaro, Supreme Court Justice Luiz Edson Fachin said the conservative leader had said: "It is over. So, let’s look ahead.” The justice made the comment in a video broadcast on local media.

Two other justices questioned by journalists declined to comment on the tenor of the hour-long meeting. Brazil’s economy minister Paulo Guedes was also present, but didn’t comment.

In a subsequent statement, the top court said the justices told Bolsonaro during the "cordial and respectful meeting" that it is important he recognize the election’s results, as well as the Brazilian people's right to freedom of movement. The country has seen widespread gridlock as pro-Bolsonaro protesters block highways.

---

JAIR BOLSONARO

Brazil's Bolsonaro declines to concede, but OKs transition

Brazil’s brash President Bolsonaro mum after election loss

New president's bid to protect the Amazon will face hurdles

Lula defeats Bolsonaro to again become Brazil's president

Earlier, in his first public comments since results came in, Bolsonaro didn’t concede, but immediately afterward his chief of staff told reporters the conservative leader had authorized him to begin the process of handing over power.

Bolsonaro, who before the election had repeatedly questioned the reliability of the country’s electoral system, had little room for potentially rejecting the results.

U.S. President Joe Biden and other international leaders have publicly recognized da Silva’s victory, as have some of Bolsonaro’s closest allies. And Cabinet members, governors-elect and evangelical leaders who have been strident supporters of Bolsonaro are now offering overtures to the incoming leftist government.

Bolsonaro lost Sunday’s race by a thin margin, garnering 49.1% of the vote to da Silva’s 50.9%, according to the nation’s electoral authority. It was the tightest presidential race since Brazil’s return to democracy in 1985, and marks the first time Bolsonaro has lost an election in his 34-year political career.

Flanked by more than a dozen ministers and allies as he delivered a two-minute speech at the presidential residence, the fiery leader did not mention the election results. Instead, he defended his tenure and said he supports ongoing protests by truckers who have erected nationwide roadblocks, as long as they don't become violent.

“Current popular movements are the result of indignation and a feeling of injustice regarding how the electoral process occurred,” he said.

The president's statement amounted to a “two-fold move,” said Thomas Traumann, an independent political analyst.

“He didn’t recognize his defeat, and sustains the suspense," Traumann said. "But as he wants to continue to dominate, to be the leader, he maintains the possibility of peaceful demonstrations.”

Much like former U.S. President Donald Trump, whom Bolsonaro openly admires, he has claimed that electronic voting machines are prone to fraud. He hasn't provided any proof, even when ordered to do so by the electoral court.

Many of his supporters also said they believed the election had been fraudulent and some called for military intervention and for Congress and the Supreme Court to be disbanded.

Earlier Tuesday, Brazil's Supreme Court ordered the federal highway police to immediately clear the roads.

A majority of the court's justices backed the decision, which accuses the highway police of “omission and inertia." By 8:30 p.m. local time, highway police said that they had removed 419 blockades, but nearly 200 were still in place.

Earlier in Sao Paulo — Brazil’s most populous state and largest economy — traffic jams around the international airport led to dozens of flight cancellations, with videos on social media showing travelers rolling their suitcases along the highway in the dark trying to catch their flights. The highways had been cleared by Tuesday morning, but airport officials said access remained difficult as traffic was still backed up in and out of the airport.

There, Dalmir Almeida, a 38-year-old protester, said that after completing three days of strikes, he and others will drive their trucks to the military barracks to ask for their support.

“The army will be in our favor,” he said

At another road block in Sao Paulo state, protesters set tires on fire. Several demonstrators were wrapped in the Brazilian flag, which has been co-opted by the nation’s conservative movement for demonstrations. Huge lines of cars could be seen snaking along the highway.

Sao Paulo Gov. Rodrigo Garcia said the time for negotiations was over, and he was not ruling out the use of force.

In Minas Gerais, a key battleground state in the election, a video on social media showed a protester telling a reporter from the O Tempo news outlet that the election was “fraudulent” and warned of future protests.

“We want Bolsonaro in 2023 and for the years to come," he said.

In Itaborai, a region in Rio de Janeiro state, an Associated Press reporter saw truck drivers kneeling in front of police officers and refusing to evacuate.

Users on social media, including in multiple Telegram and WhatsApp chat groups, shared demands that the military take the streets, or that Congress and the Supreme Court be disbanded and the president remain in office.

The Supreme Court's decision on Tuesday permits regular state police forces to reinforce federal highway police. The same was done in 2018, when an 11-day trucker strike brought Brazil to a halt.

Bolsonaro commands wide support from the police forces' rank and file, however, and it wasn’t clear how effective their involvement would be.

The 2018 stoppage caused food prices to spike and left supermarket shelves without products as gas stations ran out of fuel. It caused billions in losses and revealed the vast power that truckers possess. Bolsonaro, a lawmaker at the time and months away from winning that year’s presidential election, was an outspoken supporter of the truckers, who are now among his constituents.

___

Jeantet reported from Rio de Janeiro. Associated Press writers Carla Bridi and David Biller contributed to this report, as did producer Diarlei Rodrigues.

Halifax2TheMax

Quitter.

mickeyrat

Halifax2TheMax said:

Quitter.

didnt verbally concede but his actions are certainly shouting it.

maybe he can be an example to fuckstick.

who am I kidding....

josevolution

mickeyrat said:

Halifax2TheMax said:

Quitter.

didnt verbally concede but his actions are certainly shouting it.

maybe he can be an example to fuckstick.

who am I kidding....

lol Trumpolinni is beyond help and so are his cult! If bolsonaro could of gotten away with staying in power he def would of. 

mickeyrat

https://apnews.com/article/jair-bolsonaro-brazil-0b0e3bdcb4a0a626428d335fa560aeda

 

Jair Bolsonaro Brazil Rio de Janeiro Government and politics

With Bolsonaro tamed in defeat, Brazil steps back from brink

By DIANE JEANTET and JOSHUA GOODMAN

47 mins ago

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — In the run-up to Brazil’s presidential election, many feared a narrow result would spell the death knell for Latin America’s largest democracy.

So far, however, the worst has been averted, despite a nail-biting victory for former leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva over far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro, and ongoing protests by Bolsonaro's supporters across the country.

The conservative leader's allies quickly recognized da Silva’s victory, the military stayed in the barracks and vigilant world leaders swooped in to offer support for da Silva and nip in the bud even the thought of anything resembling the Jan. 6 insurrection that overtook the U.S. Capitol.

“All of Bolsonaro’s escape valves were shut off,” said Brian Winter, a longtime Brazil expert and vice president of the New York-based Council of the Americas. “He was prevailed upon from all sides not to contest the results and burn down the house on his way out.”

Although Bolsonaro has refused to congratulate da Silva or disavow die-hard protesters who remained on the streets Wednesday, Brazil’s institutions generally seem to have held up.

That leaves a more vexing challenge: how the 77-year-old da Silva, universally known as Lula, unites a deeply divided country, rights a wobbly economy and delivers on the outsize expectations spurred by his return to power.

---

JAIR BOLSONARO

Brazil's Bolsonaro declines to concede, but OKs transition

Brazil’s brash President Bolsonaro mum after election loss

New president's bid to protect the Amazon will face hurdles

Lula defeats Bolsonaro to again become Brazil's president

One thing is clear, if anyone can do it, it’s the charismatic da Silva — whose political skills are admired even by his detractors.

“That’s what we need, someone not only who can address inequality but also inspire our emotions and ideas,” said Marcelo Neri, director of the Getulio Vargas Foundation’s social policy center, who led the Ministry of Strategic Affairs in the Cabinet of da Silva's handpicked successor, Dilma Rousseff.

In many ways, the conservative movement Bolsonaro helped ignite — if not the politician himself — has emerged stronger from the vote, Winter said. His allies were elected as governors in several key states and his Liberal Party has become the largest in Congress, curtailing da Silva's ability to advance his own agenda after a decadelong malaise that has left millions of Brazilians hungrier than when da Silva last held office in 2010.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's administration signaled a willingness to hand over power, two days after a nail-biting election loss to leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and amid speculation the far-right incumbent might fight the result. (Nov. 2)

What's more, Brazil’s demographics seem to favor Bolsonaro's aggressive brand of identity politics — including an anti-LGBTQ agenda and hostility to environmentalists — that have earned him the moniker “Trump of the Tropics.”

The country’s own statistics institute forecasts that the number of Brazilians identifying as evangelical Christians — who preelection polls show overwhelmingly favored Bolsonaro and skew right — will overtake Roman Catholics within a decade.

Thousands of Bolsonaro's supporters thronged a regional army headquarters in Rio on Wednesday, demanding that the military step in and keep him in power. Outside a military building in the state of Santa Catarina, hundreds of protesters gave the Nazi salute while chanting the national anthem. Meanwhile, truckers maintained about 150 roadblocks across the country to protest Bolsonaro's loss, despite the Supreme Court's orders to law enforcement to dismantle them.

Since the return of democracy in the 1980s, all Brazilian leaders have been guided to varying degrees by a common belief in strong state-led enterprises, high taxes and aggressive wealth redistribution policies.

Bolsonaro initially attempted to run a more austere, business-friendly government, that is, until the social devastation wreaked by COVID-19 and his own sinking electoral prospects ultimately led him to loosen spending controls and emulate the policies he once attacked.

How da Silva will govern is less clear. He squeaked out a narrow victory of barely 2 million votes after forming a broad coalition of players. And with promises to maintain a generous welfare program in place through 2023, he will have limited fiscal space to spend on other priorities.

His running mate from another party, former Sao Paulo Governor Geraldo Alckim, was a nod to centrist, fiscally conservative policies that made da Silva the darling of Wall Street during his early years in power. This week, da Silva tapped Alckim to lead his transition team.

Also standing alongside him on the victory stage Sunday night, however, were several stalwarts of the left who have been implicated in numerous corruption scandals that have plagued his Workers’ Party and paved the way for Bolsonaro’s rise.

Although da Silva's supporters have downplayed the concerns about corruption — the Supreme Court annulled the convictions that kept him behind bars for nearly two years — for many Brazilians he is a symbol of the culture of graft that has long permeated politics. As a result, he’s likely to be held to a higher ethical standard in a country where political support is often obtained in exchange for Cabinet appointments and budgets.

“This wasn’t just a fever dream by his opponents,” Winter said of the corruption allegations that have long dogged da Silva's party.

Da Silva's victory coincides with a string of recent victories by the left in South America, including in Chile and Colombia, whose leaders revere the former union boss. During his first stint in power, da Silva led a so-called pink wave that promoted regional integration, rivaled U.S. dominance and put the rights of overlooked minorities and Indigenous groups at the center of the political agenda.

Under Bolsonaro, Brazil largely retreated from that leadership role, even if the sheer size of its economy alone means a return to leadership is never far off.

Scott Hamilton, a former U.S. diplomat, said that da Silva will have to make a tough choice on whether to use Brazil’s considerable leverage to pursue an ambitious foreign policy to tackle entrenched problems or simply use his star power on the world stage to shore up support at home.

“Basking in not being Bolsonaro will get him lots of positive attention in itself,” said Hamilton, whose last post, until April, was as consul general in Rio. “The more ambitious path would involve trying to help resolve some of the toughest political issues where democratic governments in the region are in trouble or extinguished.”

___

Goodman reported from Miami.

mickeyrat

^^^^^  updated story now includes this.....

Bolsonaro gave a video statement Wednesday calling for an end to the protests by his supporters. “I know you’re upset. I’m just as sad and upset as you are. But we have to keep our heads straight,” he said. “Closing roads in Brazil jeopardizes people’s right to come and go.”

josevolution

mickeyrat said:

^^^^^  updated story now includes this.....

Bolsonaro gave a video statement Wednesday calling for an end to the protests by his supporters. “I know you’re upset. I’m just as sad and upset as you are. But we have to keep our heads straight,” he said. “Closing roads in Brazil jeopardizes people’s right to come and go.”

Well that’s a refreshing statement! Unlike what we heard from TFG and his ilks it’s been 2 years and he’s still imploring all his hand picked candidates to keep spewing the lie!