SAO PAULO, May 7 (Reuters) – Former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has formalized his candidacy for the October election by calling on Brazilians to unite behind him in defense of democracy against Jair’s authoritarian drive Bolsonaro.
Without ever mentioning the name of the current head of state, who came from the extreme right, Lula told his supporters gathered in Sao Paulo that his rival had shown that he was not fit to lead the country and that he constantly resorted to lies in an attempt to conceal his incompetence.
“The gravity of the moment the country is going through is forcing us to overcome our differences and build an alternative path to the incompetence and authoritarianism that governs us,” he said.
The Sao Paulo meeting was called a “pre-launch” to comply with Brazilian electoral law, which provides that the official campaign will not start until August.
According to the latest polls, Lula, 76, retains a clear lead over Jair Bolsonaro in voting intentions, even if the head of state has reduced it somewhat by incurring significant social expenditure.
Lula, who relies on an alliance of seven left and center parties, has chosen as his running mate the former governor of Sao Paulo, Geraldo Alckmin, a centrist likely to reassure readers of Bolsonarism but who are worried of a policy that is too left-wing. (Report by Lisandra Paraguassu, French version Tangi Salan)