Lula da Silva wins Brazil's runoff election in historic comeback

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva won re-election in a runoff, becoming the first candidate to triumph in the second round after losing the first. With nearly 99% of ballots counted, the 80-year-old leftist secured 51.75% of votes against Flavio Bolsonaro's 48.25%. Lula had narrowly lost the first round in early October to Bolsonaro, who led by over 2.2 million votes. This marks the first time since Brazil's return to democracy in the 1980s that a second-place first-round finisher won the runoff, with polls showing nearly equal support before the vote. Following the result, Lula's supporters celebrated in Sao Paulo streets, after mass rallies including over a million people on Copacabana beach. Lula first led Brazil from 2003-2010 and returned to office in 2023 after defeating Jair Bolsonaro.