Politics

A new Bolsa Família is more than a mere rebranding of Brazil’s flagship aid program

Lula plans to revert to the original name of the Auxílio Brasil benefit program, which was rebranded under Bolsonaro. But the rechristening implies more than just a change of name

People attending the Bolsa Família registration service in Vitória da Conquista. Photo: Joa Souza/Shutterstock
People attending the Bolsa Família registration service in Vitória da Conquista. Photo: Joa Souza/Shutterstock

President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will bring back Bolsa Família, a world-renowned cash-transfer program and the hallmark of his eight years as president (2003-2010). 

The program goes a long way to explaining how Lula managed to clinch a third term in October.

It helped turn the Northeast region, where aid recipients are more numerous, into a reliable Workers’ Party stronghold. Since the inception of Bolsa Família in 2003, the party has won presidential elections in the region hands down and snatched up multiple governorships. In this year’s election, support in the Northeast was instrumental in offsetting part of Jair Bolsonaro’s lead in states of the Southeast and South.

In general terms, Bolsa Família consolidates myriad social programs into one unified scheme, paying a monthly fee to families — with primarily female heads of household being entitled to cash in the allowance. Amounts varied according to the number of children in a family and were conditioned to health and education goals — such as mandatory prenatal care, attendance at school, and up-to-date vaccination schedules.

The program was so successful that candidates opposing Lula’s party stopped saying they would put an end to it. Rather, they began promising to improve it.

Under President Bolsonaro, Bolsa Família was rebranded as Auxílio Brasil, a strategy to make the program less of an electoral asset for Lula. The change of name came with the elimination of conditionalities for aid and a boost in monthly payments. It nearly worked, helping Mr. Bolsonaro, the most unpopular president standing for re-election, turn the 2022 election into the most contested race in history.

The plan to bring back Bolsa Família became apparent...

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