In jail since April 7, serving a 12-year prison sentence for corruption and money laundering, former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva remains the centerpiece of this year’s presidential election. As his understudy Fernando Haddad continues his steep rise in the polls, already closing the gap to far-right frontrunner Jair Bolsonaro, the voting begins to look more and more like a referendum on Lula’s legacy. And a question surrounding a possible presidential pardon from Mr. Haddad to Lula, if he gets elected, has come to the center of political discussions.
The Workers’ Party itself is to blame for that. On September 15, Minas Gerais Governor Fernando Pimentel declared that he was “sure Haddad would pardon Lula as soon as he takes office.” On the following day, Mr. Bolsonaro published a video from a hospital bed asking for support from all anti-Lula voters, trying to decide the election in the first round – to avoid having...
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