Lula wins historic fourth term as Brazilian president

Far-right Flávio Bolsonaro refuses to accept election result

BRASILIA:

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the Brazilian president, has staged a dramatic election fightback, defeating his far-right opponent, Flávio Bolsonaro, to claim a historic fourth term in power.

With 100% of votes counted the 80-year-old leftist received 4.4 million votes more than Bolsonaro, with a 51.79% share to his 45-year-old rival's 48.21%. However, soon after Brazil's electoral authority confirmed Lula's victory, Bolsonaro refused to concede defeat and asked for the results to be annulled.

Lula narrowly lost the first round of the election to Bolsonaro in early October, casting his political future into doubt and plunging progressive Brazilians into three weeks of despair. Never, since the return of democracy in the 1980s, had the first round runner-up won the second vote.

But Lula did precisely that on Sunday, prompting joyous scenes on the streets of São Paulo, where he had been following events, and at the hotel where he was watching the count.

Addressing a packed crowd of ecstatic supporters in a São Paulo conference hall, Lula said: "We are going to change the way that this country is governed. This election was a defeat for denialism I want to thank God and to thank you, Brazilian men and women of this country it was democracy that made this happen."

Speaking during Lula's victory speech, Bolsonaro said it was "impossible to concede the election result" and that his legal team would seek to have the election annulled.