Presidential election in Brazil: Flávio Bolsonaro challenges Lula

For a long time, Flávio Bolsonaro was considered to have no chance. Now he could become Brazil's president - and free his father from prison. Lula only has one way to catch up.

Until recently, many Brazilians believed that the Bolsonaro era was over. Gone are the years in which Jair Bolsonaro devastated their country as president, shared responsibility for hundreds of thousands of corona deaths, had the rainforest cut down at a record pace, put a million new firearms into circulation, agitated against minorities, and split families. In 2022, Bolsonaro finally seemed to give his last performance: he lost the election, pushed the military to stage a coup, had his supporters storm the government district and was finally sentenced to 27 years in prison by the highest court. The right-wing extremist ex-military man seemed to have been pushed out of politics for good, like a puppet disappearing into his box.