International
Lula must fight for center to win Brazil runoff: analysts
AFP | Javier Tovar
To prevail in Brazil’s tighter-than-expected presidential runoff, leftist veteran Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will have to strike alliances with centrists, woo the business sector and offer voters more than just his legacy, analysts say.
The long-time front-runner may have won Sunday’s first-round vote against far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro, but the latter appears to have the momentum, having shattered pollsters’ forecasts of a rout to finish within five points of Lula (48 percent to 43) and force a second round on October 30.
If Lula, the charismatic but tarnished ex-president who led Brazil from 2003 to 2010, is to stymy Bolsonaro, analysts say, he will have to redouble his efforts to win back the political middle, still disillusioned over the devastating corruption charges — since annulled — that controversially sent him to jail in 2018.
The 76-year-old Workers’ Party (PT) founder acknowledged as much himself after Sunday’s disappointing results.
“We’ll have to spend less time preaching to the choir and more time talking to voters… those who appear not to like us,” he said Monday after meeting his campaign team to chart their strategy for the final stretch.
“Little peace-and-love Lula is ready to talk to everyone.”
Deal-making time
Known as a deft politician, Lula will need to tap that acumen to strike alliances.
“He will have to make some gestures and concessions” to the center-left and center-right, whose votes Bolsonaro will also be after, said political analyst Leandro Gabiati, head of consulting firm Dominium.
Lula already made a giant nod to centrists by picking center-right veteran Geraldo Alckmin — the candidate he beat in the 2006 presidential race — as his running mate.
Now he needs to chase the votes that went to Sunday’s third- and fourth-place finishers, center-right candidate Simone Tebet (four percent) and center-left candidate Ciro Gomes (three percent).
Lula got a clutch endorsement Tuesday from Gomes’s Democratic Labor Party (PDT), despite a long history of animosity between the two men.
Gomes grudgingly went along, saying in a video he “supported” the endorsement as “the only exit, under the circumstances.”
Getting the backing of center-right Senator Tebet, an anti-abortion Catholic, could meanwhile be key to luring socially conservative women voters.
She has hinted she is ready to back Lula. But it will be another matter winning over her party, the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB), which has a strong pro-Bolsonaro wing.
“Make your decision soon. Mine is already made,” Tebet told the divided party’s leadership.
Big spending shelved
Lula will also have to sell the business sector on his plans for Latin America’s biggest economy.
He presided over a watershed economic boom in the 2000s, blending market-friendly policy with ambitious social programs.
But Bolsonaro has more backing from the market this time around — as seen when stocks surged Monday on his better-than-expected showing.
Lula will have to be “malleable” on economic policy to woo the business sector, said Arthur Ituassu, professor of political communication at Pontifical Catholic University in Rio de Janeiro.
The former president will likely have to renegotiate his plans to expand social spending and overhaul the tax system, Ituassu said.
“That’s going to be fundamental,” he said. “That’s how he wins the volatile center.”
Back to the future?
Lula, who left office basking in a record 87-percent approval rating, also must stop leaning so heavily on his legacy and offer voters concrete, forward-looking policy plans, analysts say.
“He’s only talked about his achievements from his past administrations,” said Paulo Calmon, a political scientist at the University of Brasilia.
“He needs to present plans for the future.”
If that weren’t enough, the former president also will have to perform one final feat of political gymnastics: execute all the above without losing the 57 million votes he won Sunday.
“A lot of voters who aren’t necessarily on the left voted for Lula out of anti-Bolsonaro sentiment,” said Dominium’s Gabiati.
“But if Bolsonaro improves his message, he might reverse that rejection… and win that vote.”
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Brazilian former President (2003-2010) and candidate for the leftist Workers Party (PT) Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (C),gives his thumbs up next to his wife Rosangela "Janja" da Silva (2nd L), his vice presidential candidate Geraldo Alckmin (L), the president of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCdoB) Luciana Santos (2nd R) and Marina Silva of the Partido Rede, during a coordination meeting in Sao Paulo, Brazil on October 3, 2022. - After an inconclusive first round of presidential elections, in which ex-president and frontrunner Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva failed to garner the 50 percent of votes plus one needed to avoid an October 30 runoff against far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro, Brazilians woke up to another month of uncertainty in a deeply polarized political environment and with renewed fears of unrest. (Photo by NELSON ALMEIDA / AFP)
International
At Least Eight Dead and 19 Injured in Deadly Bus Crash in Veracruz, Mexico
A tragic bus accident in the eastern state of Veracruz left at least eight people dead and 19 others injured on Wednesday afternoon, according to local authorities.
The vehicle was traveling through the town of Zontecomatlán when it crashed near a ravine, state Civil Protection officials reported late Wednesday night. “Regrettably, the prosecutor’s office has confirmed eight fatalities,” the agency stated in an official release.
Emergency Response and Medical Care Rescue teams worked into the night to assist the survivors. The 19 injured passengers were stabilized at the scene before being transported to hospitals in the nearby municipalities of Chicontepec and Huayacocotla. While the identities of the victims have not yet been released, Mexican press reports indicate the bus was en route from Mexico City to Chicontepec.
A Recurring Issue on Mexican Highways Road accidents involving long-haul passenger buses and freight transport are a frequent occurrence in Mexico. Experts often cite excessive speed, mechanical failure, or driver fatigue as the primary catalysts for these tragedies.
This latest incident follows another major disaster in late November, where 10 people were killed and 20 injured in a similar bus crash in the western state of Michoacán. The recurring nature of these accidents continues to spark national debate regarding the enforcement of stricter safety regulations for commercial transport units.
International
Jair Bolsonaro Hospitalized for Inguinal Hernia Surgery While Serving Sentence for Attempted Coup
Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, currently serving a 27-year prison sentence for an attempted coup, underwent surgery this Thursday for an inguinal hernia. The procedure took place at the DF Star Hospital in Brasilia, according to his wife, Michelle Bolsonaro.
The 70-year-old former leader left prison on Wednesday for the first time since his incarceration in late November to prepare for the operation. “My love has just gone to the surgical center,” Michelle Bolsonaro posted on Instagram, where she has been documenting her accompaniment during his hospitalization.
Surgical Expectations and Health History Medical professionals treating the far-right ex-president (2019-2022) anticipate the operation will last approximately four hours. His recovery period in the hospital is expected to extend between five and seven days.
Dr. Claudio Birolini explained on Wednesday that while the surgery is standardized, it remains complex due to the patient’s history. Bolsonaro continues to suffer from the long-term effects of a 2018 campaign rally stabbing, an injury that required several major abdominal surgeries in the years following the attack.
“There is no such thing as a simple surgery. However, this is a scheduled and standardized procedure, so we expect it to be carried out without major complications,” Dr. Birolini stated.
Potential Additional Procedures Following the hernia repair, the medical team will evaluate whether Bolsonaro can undergo a second procedure: an anesthetic block of the phrenic nerve. This nerve controls the diaphragm, and the intervention would aim to resolve a chronic case of recurrent hiccups that has plagued the former president for years.
Bolsonaro remains under heavy security at the medical facility as he serves his lengthy sentence related to the events surrounding the January 2023 institutional crisis in Brazil.
International
Trump Orders Construction of New ‘Golden Fleet’ to Revitalize U.S. Naval Superiority
President Donald Trump issued an executive order this Monday for the immediate construction of two new warships that will bear his name. These vessels will be the pioneers of what he described as the “Golden Fleet,” a future generation of “Trump-class” battleships that he claimed would be “100 times more powerful” than those currently in service.
The announcement took place at his private residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. The President indicated that following the initial two ships, the administration aims to commission up to 25 additional vessels. He is scheduled to meet with Florida-based contractors next week to expedite production, criticizing existing defense firms for failing to deliver results efficiently.
This naval expansion is a cornerstone of Trump’s goal to revitalized the American shipbuilding industry and address the strategic gap between the U.S. and competitors like China.
The move comes amid heightened geopolitical tension. Just last week, Trump ordered the seizure of all sanctioned tankers involved with Venezuela’s “ghost fleet” to cripple the country’s crude oil industry. Since December 10, the U.S. military—deployed in the Caribbean under the guise of counter-narcotics operations—has already detained two tankers linked to Venezuelan oil transport.
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