Lula beats Bolsonaro in Brazil’s vote—but now more struggle is needed

Lula collected 51 percent of the vote (Picture: Wandaick Costa/Cut)

Workers Party (PT) candidate, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva—Lula— has beaten far right candidate Jair Bolsonaro to become president of Brazil. Lula triumphed narrowly, winning 51 percent of the vote while Bolsonaro grabbed 49 percent. 

Since Bolsonaro snatched the presidency four years ago he has presided over deep corruption, destroyed much of the Amazon rainforest and left over 686,000 people to die from Covid. Big street demonstrations greeted Lula’s win with joy and relief. But the threat posed by Bolsonaro and his far right supporters is not over yet. 

Bolsonaro’s allies dominate the parliament and his backers won governors’ roles in cities including Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. This is a problem that Lula will have to immediately face and could lead to him making more concessions to the right. 

Bolsonaro has also repeatedly said that he would not accept the results of the election if he lost. Last week the former president’s son Flavio Bolsonaro claimed that “the greatest electoral fraud ever seen” was taking place. 

The language that the Bolsonaro family and supporters have been using mirrors exactly that of former US president Donald Trump, who said the 2020 election was fraudulent. Large sections of capital backed Lula and will not be urging Bolsonaro to keep fighting the result. And the US state was quick to congratulate Lula on his win.

But there are parts of the military, and large groups of Bolsonaro supporters that may want to overturn Sunday’s verdict from the voters. The defence ministry has said it will hold its own “audit” of the votes.

High stakes in Brazil’s election

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Only workers’ action can guarantee that Bolsonaro is unable to usurp the vote. And that organisation will need to fight to make sure workers are not made to pay for the economic crisis.

While Lula has promised to eradicate hunger, provide equal pay and build more affordable housing, he has worked hard to show the ruling class that he is a safe pair of hands. In July PT leader Gleisi Hoffmann met with 30 businessmen to discuss how a Lula government could line their pockets. 

Hoffmann promised that the PT would work with the central bank and there would be no thought of controlling fuel prices if Lula came to power. Lula’s running mate Geraldo Alckmin—a centrist and neoliberal—has been tipped to take charge of economic policy in a Lula government. Lula’s victory is a big step forward but workers must not stop organising.