Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – “Brazil is my priority! The people are my cause!” shouts Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva after narrowly winning a divisive runoff election Sunday, capping a remarkable political comeback by defeating far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro — who has yet to accept defeat. The victory marks a stunning turnaround for the charismatic but tarnished leftist heavyweight, who left office in 2010 as the most popular president in Brazilian history, fell into disgrace when he was imprisoned for 18 months on since-quashed corruption charges, and now returns for an unprecedented third term at age 77.
