The president kicks off his candidacy in Rio de Janeiro with a speech focused on God, guns and family.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro launched his re-election bid at a party event in Rio de Janeiro with a speech focused on God, guns and family, as the right-wing leader tries to claw back the lead established by its main rival. , former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
The right-wing Liberal Party (PL) selected Bolsonaro as its candidate for the Oct. 2 vote on Sunday before an audience of several thousand at Rio’s Maracanazinho stadium, a move seen as the official start of Bolsonaro’s candidacy under the Brazilian law.
The appointment comes as the president continues to launch baseless attacks on the reliability of the country’s electronic voting system, casting doubt on his acceptance of defeat.
Although the president did not address those issues directly on Sunday — instead focusing on socially conservative positions popular with his base — his speech was filled with praise for the armed forces, which he said shared his concerns.
“The army is on our side,” he told his cheering supporters. “It is an army that does not accept corruption, does not accept fraud. It’s an army that wants transparency.
With his image marred by inflation, Bolsonaro is down nearly 20 percentage points in some polls from Lula, who ruled the country from 2003 to 2010 and lifted millions out of poverty through aggressive social spending during a period of rapid commodity-led growth.
Lula’s star has fallen in recent years due to high-profile corruption investigations – he spent more than a year and a half in prison due to a corruption conviction which was later overturned – but he remains a relatively popular figure among Brazilians.
For Bolsonaro fans here, however, waving Brazilian flags and decked out in the national football shirt, the possibility of a Lula comeback is out of the question.
The biggest mockery came when Bolsonaro mentioned Brazil’s Supreme Court, whose members have fought with Bolsonaro allies over unfounded election fraud allegations.
Vera Carvalho, 59, a schoolteacher from Rio, said she hoped there would be no coup, but if there was, it would be the fault of the left for trying to install a corrupt president.
“I hope there isn’t, but I’m afraid there is,” she told Reuters news agency. “Lula must go back to prison. It’s vermin.
The leftist Workers’ Party (PT) officially nominated Lula on Thursday, while centre-left candidate Ciro Gomes, a distant third, was nominated by the Democratic Labor Party (PDT) on Wednesday.
In the coming weeks, the already tense battle between the two top contenders is set to escalate further. In mid-August, Lula and Bolsonaro will be released by authorities to engage in most forms of political advertising.