By Thiago Mattos TheSequitur.com Contributor Oct. 14, 2006
LOS ANGELES - It was an upset. The Oct. 2 Brazilian presidential election surprised many political experts and pollsters who had declared President Lula’s candidacy would probably be a first-round landslide. The final tally instead crushed the certainty of victory that had surrounded the incumbent president’s reelection campaign.
After getting hit by several political scandals over the years, President Luis Inácio Lula da Silva, known simply as Lula, now has to face a run off with an opponent who wasn’t trusted even by his own party. Geraldo Alckmin, former governor of Säo Paulo, the richest Brazilian state, now has a real chance to become Brazil’s next president.
Lula’s performance had waned at the campaign’s final turn, when a few days before the election a last-minute scandal arose in the media. Operatives from the president’s party were caught paying cash for a dossier supposedly containing information that would incriminate Alckmin in a past scandal at the Health Ministry.
Unexpectedly, the scandal, dubbed Dossie-gate by the local media, increased the turnout for Alckmin. He soared 10 points in the polls and now seriously threatens Lula, who needs additional support more than ever.
However, the voters who stand by the self-made man who came from poverty and became president claim that, at least under his administration, these scandals are exposed. This kind of thing was strongly hidden by previous governments. Others criticize Lula for skipping out on previous presidential debates.
Voters will decide Brazil’s future Oct. 29. Thiago Mattos, a TheSequitur.com contributor, has a bachelor's degree in social sciences from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Currently studying English at UCLA, Mattos writes about Brazilian and world issues in his blog, Sangue de Barata, and is a founding member of Poesia & Cia, a Brazilian alternative magazine.
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