Lula takes power on January 1, 2023 and will be charged with rebuilding and reuniting a nation left devastated and bitterly divided after four years of Bolsonaro’s anarchic far-right policies. Lula addressed these and a myriad of other issues in his victory speech, but made it clear that his first priority was one that has accompanied him throughout his long political career: improving the lot of Brazil’s poor. “We cannot accept as normal that in this country millions of men, women and children do not have enough to eat,” he told an adoring crowd. “If we are the third largest food producer in the world and the largest producer of animal protein … we have the task of guaranteeing that every Brazilian can eat breakfast, lunch and dinner every day.” The speech was a more emotional version of a letter he wrote to the Brazilian people last week outlining his priorities. The letter is filled with ambitious – critics say hardly credible – proposals, such as equal pay for men and women, clearing all waiting lists for surgeries and medical tests and giving every infant a place in daycare. The plan was issued without clear details or costings, but Lula is betting voters will trust he can repeat his feats 12 years ago, when he left office with approval ratings of more than 80 percent. Like his vow to end hunger, many of his promises are similar to those he made during his first terms in power between 2003 and 2011. It promises to build more affordable housing and bring electricity and water cisterns to unconnected and remote villages. Major infrastructure projects such as public transport, energy and water will also be managed as before, with state-owned banks providing financing. He has promised tax reform and an increase in the minimum wage. In a revamp of the internationally recognized Bolsa Familia poverty relief program, the poorest families will receive 600 reais ($110) a month, and those with children under six will receive an additional 150 reais ($30). The leaflet comes with a requirement that children stay in school and get all vaccinations. How it does it all is still an open question – and a very big one at that. The commodity boom that funded many of his programs the first time around is over and he will face a hostile Congress, where Bolsonaro remains strong. He has promised to “aim for zero deforestation” but will be satisfied if his government can reduce deforestation by 83%, as seen under Lula and Dilma between 2003 and 2014. A strong emphasis will also be placed on indigenous issues. A quick rebuilding of the indigenous and environmental organizations dismantled by Bolsonaro will signal how serious Lula’s government is and will also help fight deforestation. “Instead of being world leaders in deforestation, we want to be world champions in addressing the climate crisis and socio-environmental development,” Lula said. “In this way we will have healthy food on our plates, clean air to breathe and water to drink and many quality jobs with green linings.” The focus on reindustrialization and public works projects may be necessary, but it’s also a sign of how Latin American politics has failed to fully grasp the realities of the 21st century, said Shannon O’Neil, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. “What I find frustrating sometimes about the future of Latin America is that the kind of discussions they’re having are based on 20th-century economies,” O’Neil said, without directly naming Lula. “It’s not about human capital, which is really the future of any workforce, it’s not about automation or intellectual property creation or research and development. A lot of it is about looking back at economies that are disappearing. This is not what the next 25 years will bring.”
