Lola, all hope

By Osvaldo Cardusa

Reporter in Brazil

For the sixth time, the former mechanical drive, the 30-year-old, as he defines himself, will face another scrutiny on Sunday, October 30, in a second round. He did so in 1989, 1994 and 1998, and only won in 2002 and 2006.

The manipulative actions of the crippled Lava Jato judicial process, headed by former coordinator Deltan Dallagnol and ex-judge Sérgio Moro, were enough to dislodge Lula from the 2018 deliberations and clear the way to a poll win for far-right-leaning President Jair Bolsonaro.

Unfairly, as proven in court, the founder of the Workers’ Party (PT) spent 580 days in political prison, between April 2018 and November 2019. He later obtained the annulment of his sentences, enabling him to win back the politicians and put themselves in the race for the Planalto Palace, the seat of political power.

As expected, the former president (2003-2011) later suffered a torrent of accusations in court, but over time he revealed the truth without blame and unparalleled moral purity.

Lula regained his eligibility and also scored an impressive 26 judicial victories at the Federal Supreme Court.

From worker to boss

He was born in 1945 in a two-room, mud-floored house in the town of Caitis, in the state of Pernambuco (northeast). Without electricity, without sewage, bathroom or shoes, the boy and his family, in search of wealth like thousands of other Brazilians, traveled to São Paulo, where he began working on the Santos Pier to help with household expenses.

A hiker at eight and a shoe-shining boy at nine, he became a dry-cleaning assistant in his early teens. He worked in a metallurgical plant at the age of 14, was accepted to the technical course of mechanical turning.

Fascinated by the size and possibilities of the large city, Lula’s brother, then a member of the underground Brazilian Communist Party, was persuaded to attend union meetings.

A mechanical turner and a substitute for union leadership, he married at the age of 23. Two years later, he lost his son and wife, who was eight months pregnant, victims of hepatitis exacerbated by anemia and the neglect of the health professionals who treated her.

With Miriam Cordero, one of the brides, he gave birth to his first daughter, Lorient. He married a second time to Marisa Leticia, also a widow, with whom he had three children (Lola was also recording his step-son Marcus, the offspring of a woman who did not know his biological father). In 1975, just before his thirtieth birthday, he became president of the union.

He later entered politics. During the military dictatorship (1964-1985) all opposition united in the Brazilian democratic movement. With the regime losing its breath, the two-party system ended.

When the creation of political parties was released, there was a great split, especially due to the ideological diversity of the democratic group.

This was the context in which the Labor Party, founded on February 10, 1980 and defined by leftist ideas, emerged. The founding manifesto of the party defended such flags as the political participation of the workers, the building of a party dedicated to the masses, and the struggle against the current economic and political system.

The organization emerged as a promoter of changes in the lives of city and country workers, left-wing militants, intellectuals, and artists. Years later, Lula was a federal deputy and presidential candidate.

Now Lula wants to reorient Brazil “on the paths of sovereignty, development, justice, social inclusion, democracy and respect for the environment.”

Electoral justice confirmed that in the first round of voting on October 2, the Labor leader was in first place, with 48.43 percent of the valid votes (excluding null and void votes), and Bolsonaro, who aspires to be re-elected. The Liberal Party was 43.20.

Since none of the applicants obtained an absolute majority of the votes in the dispute, i.e. more than half of the valid votes (excluding null votes and invalid votes), as provided by the national legislation to be elected, they will go to a second round of referendum on October 30.

Re-election of ABDICA

Recently, Lula also stated that he was waiting for the CEO to acknowledge the elective outcome. “I hope that if I win the election, the incumbent president will have a reasonable minute and call me to acknowledge the result,” he said.

He noted that Bolsonaro “elected a deputy by electronic ballot box. Only when he loses doubts? And he stressed that this is not possible”, defending the integrity of the digital vessels and the electoral system.

In other comments, the plaintiff, the favorite in all polls, has ruled out re-election in 2026 if he wins on Sunday. If elected, I will be president for one term. “Leaders are made through action and their commitment to the population,” Lula wrote on Twitter. Such a promise is not new, because since the start of the election campaign, in August, the Labor candidate has specified that his challenge will be greater than in 2002 because he does not intend to run for a second term.

However, the G1 portal indicated that, although not new, the left-wing politician’s gesture is a message to close allies and voters, such as the vice presidential candidate in his formula, former governor Geraldo Alckmin.

It is also a reference to his new ally, Senator Simon Tibet (Brazilian Democratic Movement), who came third in the first round of elections. Lula’s reference, pointing to the G1, opens up the debate about a possible successor outside the Labor camp in 2026.

Just three days after the historic referendum and amid a tense election campaign, Brazil is once again on a pilgrimage to true power: the vote.

arp / ocs