How elderly ‘unsung heroes’ powered Lula’s historic fightback in Brazil
Summary
Older Brazilians who skipped the first round returned to vote in the runoff, and the article says their turnout helped Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeat Flávio Bolsonaro and secure a fourth term. More than 1.4 million of the 3 million additional runoff voters were over 70, though experts were still studying how the vote shifted.Key Facts
- Celia de Oliveira Soares, 101, went to a polling place in Rio de Janeiro and voted for Lula.
- Soares was among more than 1 million older people who missed the 4 October first round but voted in the runoff on 25 October.
- The article says Lula became the first candidate in Brazil’s democratic era to recover from losing the first round and win the election.
- Lula gained 10.3 million votes between the first and second rounds.
- Of 3 million additional voters in the runoff, 1.4 million were over 70.
- Other factors cited for Lula’s gains included expanded welfare benefits, a large WhatsApp mobilization and student-led street protests.
- A 114-year-old retiree, Josefa Pereira da Conceição, voted in Brazil’s northeast wearing a shirt supporting Lula.
- Lula thanked older voters at his 81st birthday event and praised images of elderly people being brought to polling places.
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