Brazil’s Lula gears up for ‘last dance’ with run for fourth presidential term

Nearly four decades after Lula’s first run for the Brazilian presidency, his name will appear on the ballot for a seventh time on October 4 as he aims to win a fourth term at the helm of Latin America’s largest economy. This is despite a promise that his third tenure would be his last. “If I’m elected, I will only serve one term as president,” he said in the days leading up to his 2022 victory over former president Jair Bolsonaro. Although Lula vowed to step aside and allow for “the emergence of new leaders” on the left, he now looks like the only presidential candidate who might beat far-right rival Flavio Bolsonaro – the eldest son of Jair, who is currently serving a 27-year prison sentence for attempting a coup. Polls show Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro neck-and-neck in a race that has seen other candidates sidelined. Read moreLula and Bolsonaro’s mudslinging heats up ahead of weekend vote Throughout his campaign Lula, who will turn 81 on October 27, has tried to reassure voters that his age should not count against him. “I’m in great health,” he said when he announced his candidacy in August, praising the benefits of his exercise routine. But he has also promised – and this time “fo...