Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva overcame his first-round loss by gaining 10.3 million additional ballots during the 25 October runoff. Older citizens proved pivotal, as 1.4 million of the 3 million newly participating runoff voters were over the age of 70, a group not legally required to vote in Brazil. The dramatic turnaround was further bolstered by an eve-of-election boost to welfare benefits, digital organizing on WhatsApp, and student street protests. Political analysts observed that many citizens who initially sat out or cast protest votes ultimately backed Lula as a lower-risk alternative.
Key points
High voluntary turnout among senior citizens served as a decisive factor in reversing the…: High voluntary turnout among senior citizens served as a decisive factor in reversing the first-round election results.
A coalition of student street protesters and older voters formed a cross-generational mov…: A coalition of student street protesters and older voters formed a cross-generational movement that ultimately altered the presidential race.
Many returning voters backed Lula as a lower-risk alternative because fear of his opponen…: Many returning voters backed Lula as a lower-risk alternative because fear of his opponent outweighed other political considerations.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
It had been nearly a decade since Celia de Oliveira Soares last voted, and months since the 101-year-old great-grandmother last left her home.
But on 25 October, when Brazil held what many considered its most important presidential election in decades, relatives helped Soares into a wheelchair and drove her to a nearby school to make sure the far-right candidate, Flávio Bolsonaro, did not prevail.
Soares clung to the banister as, step by step, she climbed two flights of stairs to the polling booth under the watchful eye of her granddaughter’s husband, Marcio Marques.
Inside, the frail but jaunty centenarian keyed the number “13” – representing Bolsonaro’s leftwing rival, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – into an electronic voting machine and pressed confirm.
“I like Lula. I really do!” enthused Soares, a retired bank employee who has lived in Rio de Janeiro most of her life.
“I don’t like Bolsonaro or his father. So the efficient thing to do was go out and vote,” Soares added, as her grandsons, Tito and Ravi, played on the balcony around her surrounded by…
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