The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Lula da Silva's followers rebel against discouragement in the heart of the celebrations in São Paulo

2022-10-03T04:01:13.463Z


The long lines star in a day that the electoral authorities describe as "calm and harmonious" As night fell on Paulista Avenue, the historic artery of São Paulo, the hubbub returned to the body of the followers of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the favorite in his fight with President Jair Bolsonaro. They could only breathe easy when the first workers' president of Brazil went on to lead the slow vote count in this Sunday's elections, closer than anticipated, after the current


As night fell on Paulista Avenue, the historic artery of São Paulo, the hubbub returned to the body of the followers of former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the favorite in his fight with President Jair Bolsonaro.

They could only breathe easy when the first workers' president of Brazil went on to lead the slow vote count in this Sunday's elections, closer than anticipated, after the current president surprisingly started ahead.

Lula, as he had promised, appeared at the end of the night to address the crowd gathered in front of the red columns of the São Paulo Museum of Art, the emblematic MASP.

"I never won an election in a first round, it seems that fate likes to make me work a little more", he told them with his hoarse voice.

“Starting tomorrow, we will already be in the campaign”,

FOLLOW OUR ELECTION DIRECT

Results of the elections in Brazil 2022, live

"We turned it around, we turned it around," shouts excited Monique Souza, a 21-year-old law student dressed in a red shirt, the color of the Workers' Party, while following the minute-by-minute results on her cell phone and on the In the background fireworks explode and the roar of hundreds of people crowded together to celebrate Lula's victory, which will be delayed until the second round at the end of the month.

The celebrations have given way to caution, but the party continued, with the sticky

Lula lá

as a soundtrack.

"I'm here because I defend democracy," affirms Monique emphatically, a Northeasterner like Lula, justifying her vote.

"The president who should ensure that we have health and vaccines only denied the pandemic," she lashed out at Bolsonaro, whom she describes as sexist, homophobic, racist and "everything you want to imagine."

"It will be a very close dispute, unfortunately," she concludes, although she remains hopeful.

It is the culmination of a day in which long lines have been seen instead of the feared episodes of political violence in the most polarized elections of recent times.

"We don't want any more hate," said Lula after voting very early in São Paulo.

In a day that has passed with surprising normality, after the incidents of attacks with ideological overtones that had occurred in recent weeks, the queues have marked the elections in different cities of Brazil, which has slowed down the count.

On Paulista Avenue, Lula da Silva, former president and presidential candidate, speaks to his followers after his victory in the first round, this Sunday in São Paulo. Matias Delacroix (AP)

Voters had to elect not only the next president, but also federal and state deputies, senators and governors, which complicated the process as they faced electronic ballot boxes in which they had to have the numbers of their candidates present, without being able to use the telephone. cell phone.

Lula, for example, had the number 13 of the PT, while Bolsonaro 22.

“Whoever wants to climb the stairs does not need to stand in line,” shouted an official from the Regional Electoral Tribunal while giving directions amid the hustle and bustle of the school located in the Universidade Anhembi Morumbi, a 12-story building that pales compared to the other skyscrapers that abound in Paulista.

In the middle of the afternoon, the swarm of people entering and leaving the elevators was permanent.

“This is very crowded.

There are five votes, that is why it is delayed, ”she explained to this newspaper, but she reserved her name because she was not authorized to give statements.

The expectation that Lula would resolve the election in the first round dominated the final stretch of the campaign, but that possibility evaporated as the count progressed.

In the end, he planted 48.4% of the votes, to 43.2 for Bolsonaro.

“I would like to close the election now, but I think it is going to

the second round

”, as the second presidential round is known, resigned after casting her vote María Luisa Dantes, a 19-year-old student with pink-dyed hair who was participating in an election for the first time.

She has no memories of Lula's mandates, but she is bothered by the doubts that Bolsonaro has planted in an electoral system that she considers "quite safe".

Voting is mandatory in Brazil, and optional for 16 and 17-year-olds, one of the few countries in the world that allows teenagers to vote.

Lula counts mostly on these novice voters, according to the measurements.

In the row of elevators, Felipe Bolivar, a 33-year-old businessman who comes with the shirt of the Brazilian team, as Bolsonaro has requested, waited patiently.

On the back is the name of Neymar Jr., who this week recorded a video on Tik Tok in support of the far-right president.

“Colors define a lot of people in Brazil.

It is a way of expressing our will, and of integrating a community”, he explains.

Although he makes it quite clear, he prefers not to say who his vote will be for.

The electronic ballot boxes that have been the target of attacks by Bolsonaro were opened as usual for a period of new hours, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., but this was the first time that the entire country was subordinated to the Brasilia time, the federal capital.

That is to say, that all the voters turned out simultaneously, regardless of the difference between the time slots of a huge territory.

However, the Superior Electoral Court has come out to clarify that the voters who were already in line before the closing could vote normally, which prolonged the day.

Its president, Alexandre de Moraes, has described it as "calm and harmonious".

The great celebrations in the Paulista, those of the definitive victory, must wait for now.

Subscribe here to the EL PAÍS América

newsletter

and receive all the key information on current affairs in the region.

Source: elparis

All news articles on 2022-10-03

You may like

News/Politics 2024-02-25T16:32:35.295Z

Trends 24h

News/Politics 2024-03-28T06:04:53.137Z

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.