A new horizon came at the dawn of Oct 30th in Brazil, when Lula, the presidential candidate representing the Workers’ Party (PT) was elected to office. After almost a decade of reactionary government administration over Brazil, the PT takes back power for the subaltern classes, the Left, the social movements, and the unions. In 2016 the unpopular US-blessed coup to establish a US friendly Bolsonaro occurred, but in 2022 the people at the election polls voted into office, Lula, a Brazilian socialist friendly to the people’s struggles.
Lula’s victory confirms the fact that Latin America is entering an unprecedented epoch of socialist leaders and movements being voted into institutional power. Brazil is now joining the league of anti-imperialist nations among the Global South, nations Lula and the PT expressed alignment with, like Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia.
Despite Lula not too long ago was imprisoned for false corruption charges, the people recognize his movement as aligned to their interest, they trust he will fulfil his promise “to respond to the immediate needs of the population and to recover the social and economic rights that have been lost in the last six years during the governments of Michel Temer (who succeeded Dilma, ex-PT president of Brazil) and Jair Bolsonaro.” (People’s Dispatch)
In the midst of this transition of hegemonic power, the popular masses of Brazil are in glee, but as expected the reactionary elements of society are stubbornly working to sabotage the victory. Highways and streets are closed off with burning tires, counter-left protests are occurring, the fear of Bolsonaro organizing a coup is thick in the air. Though the social movements that put Lula into office are now militantly defending the people’s choice, the Homeless Workers Movement (MTST) are now sending militants to push the reactionaries back from the cities.
The struggle over Brazil’s soul in still ongoing, but now the people’s movements are in positions of power and legitimacy, ready to push back against reaction and US-supported intervention.
Exercising the will in their hearts, to protect the peoples' confidence in Lula, the PT, and the popular movement, because all of these forces are “bringing hope back to Brazil.”