WASHINGTON: US president Joe Biden congratulated Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva for his victory yesterday in “free, fair and credible elections,” and said he looks forward to continued cooperation between the countries.
Leftist Lula defeated President Jair Bolsonaro in an election runoff that marked a stunning comeback for Lula and the end of Brazil’s most right-wing government in decades.
Lula won 50.9% of votes compared with 49.1% for Bolsonaro, the Supreme Electoral Court said, declaring Lula, previously a two-term president, the winner.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken congratulated Brazilians in a tweet “for exercising their right to vote and reaffirming the strength of their democracy.”
The US “looks forward to continuing our strong partnership with President-Elect Lula as we build a democratic, prosperous, and equitable hemisphere,” he said.