Dilma Rousseff is an economist and once trained as a guerrilla fighter during Brazil’s military dictatorship
Ruling-party candidate Dilma Rousseff won Sunday’s presidential runoff in Brazil, becoming the country’s first-ever woman president, according to official results.
With virtually all the votes counted, Ms. Rousseff had over 56 per cent of the valid ballots, compared to 44 per cent of her rival, social democrat Jose Serra, who conceded defeat late Sunday.
Her election means a continuation of the policies of popular President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who nominated his one-time chief of staff as the candidate of his Workers’ Party (PT) and supported her until the relatively unknown politician became Brazilians’ pick for president.
“The task of succeeding him is difficult and challenging. But I’ll know how to honour his legacy. I’ll know how to consolidate his work and build upon it,” an almost tearful Ms. Rousseff said of her mentor in her first address as president-elect, before an auditorium filled with PT officials.
After final confirmation of the results, Ms. Rousseff, 62, will be inaugurated on January 1 at the helm of the world’s eighth-largest economy, with a four-year mandate and a majority in both houses of Congress.
She lacks Lula’s charisma, as was apparent when she read her first speech after the election. In her 15-minute talk, however, Ms. Rousseff highlighted her historic position as Brazil’s first female president.
“I would really like the fathers and mothers of girls to look today into their eyes and tell them, ‘Yes, women can’!” she said.
Ms. Rousseff said her most “fundamental commitment” would be the eradication of poverty and the creation of opportunities for all. She emphasized economic development, the fight against “the protectionism of rich countries,” and he need to put an end to financial speculation which increases “the volatility of capital and currencies.” Ms. Rousseff already comfortably won the first round of the presidential election on October 3 with 47 per cent of the votes, but fell short of the more-than-50-per-cent requirement to avoid a runoff.
The hugely popular Lula, 65, was barred from serving more than two consecutive terms, and he threw his weight behind Rousseff, who is an economist and once trained as a guerrilla fighter during Brazil’s military dictatorship.
Quick and smooth polling
Close to 136 million people had been registered to vote in the runoff, with a 21-per-cent abstention rate - higher than normal due to a long holiday weekend that ends with All Soul’s Day Tuesday.
Voting is compulsory for Brazilian adults.
Polling stations opened at 1000 GMT and closed nine hours later in most of the country, with some Amazonian states voting until 2100 GMT because they are in a different time zone.
Electronic voting was in place, and the count was very quick.
According to a report by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), the election was relatively calm across Brazil.
There were 390 election-related incidents and 232 arrests for illegal campaigning. In the first round of voting, there were close to 1,000 incidents, with a total of almost 400 arrests.
Confident of its candidate’s chances, the PT had set up in advance a large stage in Brasilia for a party that started soon after the first election results were made public. At least 50,000 people are expected to attend, the PT said.
Lula remains behind the scenes
The election winner reportedly planned a week’s holiday to recover from the long campaign, then would join Mr. Lula on a visit to Mozambique and to the Group of 20 summit November 11-12 in South Korea. Lula will be saying goodbye to the international community, and introduce his successor.
“I have no doubt that she will carry out a great government for this country,” Mr. Lula said of his favoured candidate after casting his ballot in his home city, the industrial Sao Bernardo do Campo, near Sao Paulo.
Mr. Lula, who carries an 80 per cent popularity rating, insisted that he would not be directly involved in Ms. Rousseff’s government.
“Dilma will need to build a government that has her face,” he stressed.
For the same reason, Mr. Lula declined to address the public Sunday, or to be at Ms. Rousseff’s party in Brasilia.
“He thinks it’s her party,” said Mr. Lula’s advisor Gilberto Carvalho.
Still, analysts widely considered the election result a great triumph for Mr. Lula, although he was not a candidate. It was the first time since the end of the military dictatorship in 1985 that Mr. Lula was not a presidential candidate.
“The joy I feel for my victory mixes with the emotion of his departure,” Ms. Rousseff said.
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