The victory of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva over Flávio Bolsonaro in Brazil’s presidential election has energised Argentina’s opposition, where politicians are looking to the campaign for lessons ahead of the 2027 contest against President Javier Milei. Brazilian headlines dubbed the result “Lulazo.”
Within two hours of Lula’s victory being confirmed, a WhatsApp channel called “Peronist Army” had been created, inspired by a digital initiative used to communicate with Lula supporters. A week later, the Argentine Workers’ Party’s local group had received at least ten requests to discuss the campaign and share its lessons.
“The victory shows the need for organisation and for bringing efforts together, both politically and technologically,” said Martín Lousteau, a lawmaker from the centrist-left Radical Civic Union. He described the result as evidence that a mobilised society can resist and defeat right-wing movements that disregard democracy.
The election has particular significance for Argentine progressives amid what they describe as a regional shift to the right. Jorge Kreyness, secretary-general of Argentina’s Communist Party, called Lula’s win a source of encouragement and said it could signal a change after a period in which right-wing candidates had prevailed in many elections across the region.
Milei had openly backed Flávio Bolsonaro, attending the launch of his campaign in São Paulo in late July and calling Lula “socialist trash.” Argentine lawmaker Gustavo Fernando López said Lula’s win was therefore also a major political setback for Milei. The Argentine president’s involvement, Kreyness argued, may have hurt Bolsonaro’s campaign.
Brazil’s campaign also brought Argentina’s domestic conditions into the debate. Lula challenged Flávio over poverty, unemployment and the economy, while Bolsonaro supporters pointed to falling inflation under Milei. Argentina’s monthly inflation rate fell from 25.5% in December 2023, when Milei took office, to 1.9% in September, according to the figures cited in the report. The number of businesses, however, has dropped by more than 30,000, the largest decline in 24 years, according to the Fundar foundation’s monthly business monitor.
Tensions between Lula and Milei continued after the election. Milei’s government did not formally recognise Lula’s victory, with spokesperson Adrian Ravier saying only that it had “taken note” of the result. The administration also faced scrutiny from Argentine lawmakers over its possible role in Flávio’s reported departure for the United States, prompting legislative and legal initiatives to establish what the government knew about the operation.
Milei’s political standing has weakened, but opposition figures remain divided. A Clarín analysis of 11 opinion polls found that 57% of Argentines disapproved of his government and 57.2% viewed him negatively. At the same time, different opposition leaders are competing for influence, including former president Cristina Kirchner, Buenos Aires province governor Axel Kicillof and former presidential candidate Sergio Massa.
López said that, despite the government’s economic indicators, the opposition had yet to unite behind a candidate capable of defeating Milei. He argued that Lula’s victory could help persuade rival groups to form a broader front, adding that the far right could be beaten through political organising, a clear governing programme and public mobilisation.
Sources: Folha Mundo.