Politics

Lula-Alckmin: the most unlikely bedfellows could share a presidential slate

Despite being on opposite sides of the Brazilian political dichotomy pre-2018 and facing off in 2006, Lula and Geraldo Alckmin could be about to team up to topple President Bolsonaro

lula alckmin
Lula (in the red tie) after a dinner party with Geraldo Alckmin, in São Paulo. Photo: Ricardo Stuckert/IL

Earlier this week, Brasília correspondent André Spigariol explained why selecting a running mate has been such a delicate subject for Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. But the incumbent isn’t the only one who has to solve this political puzzle ahead of the 2022 election. Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who leads all polls, is having trouble of his own picking his potential future vice president.

An icon of Brazil’s left, Lula has toyed with the idea of appointing well-heeled conservative and former São Paulo Governor Geraldo Alckmin as his running mate — a move that would be completely unthinkable as recently as four years ago.

Mr. Alckmin was one of the founding members of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) in the late 1980s, the party that disputed federal-level elections toe-to-toe with Lula’s Workers’ Party for the better part of the past three decades. In 2006, Mr. Alckmin ran against Lula on the presidential ballot, losing in the runoff.

Without a party since leaving the PSDB in mid-December, Mr. Alckmin is reluctant to run for a fifth stint as São Paulo governor — despite leading...

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