Jair Bolsonaro: how ‘Brazil’s Trump’ is shaking up the presidential race
Controversial far-right politician will take on jailed former president Lula
A far-right populist known as “Brazil’s Trump” has formally thrown his hat into the ring for this autumn’s presidential election, igniting a campaign already beset by infighting and hostility on both sides.
Congressman Jair Bolsonaro has attracted a huge social media following with his outspoken comments that have led to comparisons with the US president. He once said in Playboy magazine that he would be “incapable of loving a gay son” and told another newspaper one congresswomen was “not worth raping” because “she is very ugly”.
Opponents have been outraged by his overtly racist and homophobic rhetoric. But his supporters see he him as the only person to clean up the corrupt and crime-ridden country.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Only a few months ago, most experts regarded Bolsonaro as unelectable due to his radical positions, his record as an apologist for military dictatorship and torture, his offensive comments and his lack of major party affiliation.
“Although these may still prove insurmountable obstacles to his election, many now see him as a dark-horse candidate—a populist outsider whose anti-establishment rhetoric may yet propel him to victory,” says Foreign Policy.
Bolsonaro is in favour of loosening Brazil’s gun control laws and is staunchly anti-abortion, winning him the support of millions of evangelical Christians who could be crucial in a closely fought campaign.
His rallies are characterised by raucous crowds who mimick guns with their fingers, says ABC News – “a hand sign that the former military officer has made popular”.
Like the US president, his stump speech often contains promises to shake up the status quo, fill his cabinet with military officers and take Brazil out of the Paris climate accord.
Despite standing for the little-known Social Liberal Party, Bolsonaro is polling second behind former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is currently serving a jail sentence for corruption and is unlikely to be allowed to stand in October.
This could open the way for Bolsonaro, but while some surveys suggest many Brazilians see him as the man to take control of crime and corruption, “he also has a high rejection rate, which could make it tricky for him to win if the vote were to go into a run-off”, reports the BBC.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Nigeria's worsening rate of maternal mortality
Under the radar Economic crisis is making hospitals unaffordable, with women increasingly not receiving the care they need
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Elevating Earth Day into a national holiday is not radical — it's practical'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
UAW scores historic win in South at VW plant
Speed Read Volkswagen workers in Tennessee have voted to join the United Auto Workers union
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Myanmar: the Spring Revolution and the downfall of the generals
Talking Point An armed protest movement has swept across the country since the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi was overthrown in 2021
By The Week Staff Published
-
Israel hits Iran with retaliatory airstrike
Speed Read The attack comes after Iran's drone and missile barrage last weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Is there a peaceful way forward for Israel and Iran?
Today's Big Question Tehran has initially sought to downplay the latest Israeli missile strike on its territory
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of war
Speed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How powerful is Iran?
Today's big question Islamic republic is facing domestic dissent and 'economic peril' but has a vast military, dangerous allies and a nuclear threat
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US, Israel brace for Iran retaliatory strikes
Speed Read An Iranian attack on Israel is believed to be imminent
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How green onions could swing South Korea's election
The Explainer Country's president has fallen foul of the oldest trick in the campaign book, not knowing the price of groceries
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine's battle to save Kharkiv from Putin's drones
The Explainer Country's second-largest city has been under almost daily attacks since February amid claims Russia wants to make it uninhabitable
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published