Brazil’s “iron lady” vies for presidency

There are two Latin American presidential tendencies that may be developing: electing a conservative leader to replace a leftist regime (see: Pinera, Sebastian) or voting for a female candidate (see: Chinchilla, Laura). Brazil’s upcoming presidential election may provide a clue as to which will be the region’s trend du jour.

Yesterday the Worker’s Party selected presidential chief of staff Dilma Rousseff as its candidate to succeed current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Acknowledging Brazil’s role as an emerging global economic power, Rousseff pledged to “ensure macroeconomic stability.” Described my MercoPress as the “iron lady of Brazilian politics” Rousseff also promised to keep working with the ruling coalition of eleven parties.

Rousseff is not a shoe-in for the presidency despite Lula’s broad appeal. A poll released earlier this month found her trailing Sao Paulo’s conservative governor Jose Serra by slightly more than five percent. Alluding to a 2005 bribes-for-votes scandal, the opposition has tried to pin Lula and Rousseff as corrupt. But with elections planned for October, there will be ample time for campaigning and for Rousseff to overcome poll deficits.

Lula is barred by electoral law from running for a third consecutive presidential term. Yet unlike other regional leaders the popular Lula is not interested in changing the law to suit his personal whims:

"I don't think about returning to the presidency," Lula said. "Anyone who is elected as president has the legitimate right to be a candidate for re-election"…

"I know Dilma well and, as such I think she will impose her own pace--if she makes a decision that's more to the left than mine, I should accept it normally. And if she makes a decision more to the right than mine, I should accept that normally. I have total confidence in Dilma and that she'll know to do what's correct for the country."

Image- BBC News
Online Sources- The Latin Americanist, Colombia Reports, Reuters, MercoPress, NPR, People’s Daily Online, Angus Reid Consultants, Wall Street Journal