On October 25th, just two days before Luiz's 81st birthday, he defeated Flavio Bolsonaro with an electoral vote of 51.8%, winning his fourth term as Brazilian president. This seasoned politician, who emerged from poverty and rose through the labor movement, has made history and won this crucial battle to defend the left-wing position in Latin America.
This victory did not come easily. After falling in the first round, a comeback in the final selection was necessary. Although the Lula government achieved impressive results in employment, income, and poverty reduction, these achievements did not enable him to widen a significant gap with his opponent in terms of votes.
Meanwhile, the security problems plaguing Brazilian society and the mobilization capability of the right-wing parties have kept this election highly uncertain. In the end, more than 48% of voters still chose Flavio Bolsonaro, and the right-wing influence in Congress has further increased.
In 2003, when Lula first took office as president, the “Pink Tide” in Latin America was still in its early stages. Over the past twenty years, regional politics have undergone many changes, from Argentina to Chile, from Colombia to Peru. The political pendulum has continuously tilted towards the right. The U.S. policy adjustments towards Latin America have also added new variables to the political landscape of this region.
As Latin America's largest economy, Brazil's political trajectory influences the power balance across the entire region.
Now, as Luiz Inacio Lula once again stands in the position of a winner, he and the Labor Party are faced with a Brazil that has undergone profound changes in terms of social demands, political mobilization methods, and the external environment.
Why has improving people's welfare not resulted in a greater advantage in getting votes? How do social media influence people's judgment of government policies? How will Lula, after being re-elected, solve governance challenges and advance his policies during the new term? How should the Labor Party respond to new social demands, seeking development and cooperation in a complex domestic and international environment?
With these questions in mind, on October 26th, the Observer Network conducted a discussion with Renato Peneluppi, the director of the Brazilian Citizens Committee in Beijing and the representative of the Brazilian Labor Party in China. The discussion focused on the social changes behind this election, the challenges of Rousseff's new term, as well as the political landscape in Latin America and the future of Sino-Brazilian relations.
On October 25, 2026, local time, in São Paulo, Brazil, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula spoke to his supporters after winning the second round of presidential elections. Visual China
The key to this reversal was the people. The people realized their own immediate needs and recognized that national sovereignty was being threatened. They understood that there was no other choice but to rise up and fight.
In the first round of voting, everyone thought we would win easily, believing that we could pass through smoothly. But after seeing the results, they began to worry about being dominated, about violence, and about losing the rights granted by the constitution and civil rights.
The Bosonaro family is threatening the basic democratic rights that we have gradually established over the past four or fifty years. The people see this history in the Labor Party, and they see leadership in Lula. They realize that action must be taken to defend this history and the rights that have been fought for over the years.
So, everyone united and mobilized.
According to the data, more than 33 million people did not vote in the first round, while the number of abstainers in the second round was significantly reduced. Many people took this opportunity to travel long distances, traveling between different cities in order to get to the polling stations and ensure that they could safeguard Brazil’s history and valuable assets.
Therefore, this election is mainly aimed at defending our sovereignty and civil rights, resisting imperialism, violence, illegal paramilitary groups, and those criminals who have been in control of our country.
He would do this, and we are not surprised at all; his father did the same. They have already made such threats before, and with their majority in the Senate, this has become an important leverage for them to undermine our democracy.
So, when you see them denying and refusing to accept the election results, it precisely reflects their nature: they do not respect the law, do not respect the system, and do not respect citizens’ rights. They want to attack the most fundamental stability of state institutions, as well as the legitimacy of our president.
We received more than 4.4 million votes compared to him. In other words, over 440,000 people voted in our favor. Winning with such a significant advantage clearly shows that there was no illegal or interference involved.
As for what the Labour Party plans to do, we will be prepared and continue to fight. There is no other choice now. Winning this election does not mean that the problems have been solved. It only means that we have gained the right to hold the presidency, allowing us to continue to combat those forces that threaten our freedom, democracy, and civil rights.
(Note from Observer Network: After Flavio Bolsonaro refused to acknowledge his defeat, the party chairman of his party, the Brazilian Freedom Party, acknowledged Lula's victory on the 26th local time. However, he stated that the controversies surrounding the election still need to be clarified.)
Most people in Brazil communicate through platforms under Meta, mainly Instagram, WhatsApp, and Facebook. 65% of the information that people obtain comes from these three social media platforms. They report what these platforms tell them, and based on that, they form their opinions and understand things.
These platforms are filled with a lot of false information. Social media manipulates algorithms to shape people's thoughts, perceptions, and the way they view the world. Even if they have food and jobs, they still feel that most people don't have these, because what they read and see on social media is just that. Whether they are going to the bathroom, having lunch, or before going to sleep, they always have their phones with them. They believe whatever is said on social media. That's how their impression of society is formed.
