Brazil's Lula wins historic presidential election; Bolsonaro reportedly refuses to concede

Livestream Menu Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has won a fourth term as Brazil's president, notching an unprecedented fourth term after a dramatic comeback from a defeated first round. Bolsonaro refused to concede defeat, saying he would seek the annulment of the outcome, Reuters reported. The iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (EWZ) plunged nearly 20% in overnight trading following Lula's win, as markets brace for the upset after Bolsonaro's first round win had sent stocks higher. EWZ SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - OCTOBER 24: Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva, incumbent president of Brazil and presidential candidate for Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) waves a Brazil flag during a rally ahead of the presidential runoff at Avenida Paulista on October 24, 2026 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Alexandre Schneider | News | Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has won an unprecedented fourth term as Brazil's president, overturning a first-round deficit to beat Senator Flávio Bolsonaro in a runoff that split the country almost evenly. Lula took 51.8% of valid votes to Bolsonaro's 48.2%, according to the Superior Electoral Court, with nearly all ballots counted on Sunday. The results are also historic as it's the first time since Brazil returned to direct elections in 1989 that a candidate has won the final runoff after losing in the first round. Bolsonaro refused to concede defeat, saying he would seek the annulment of the outcome, Reuters reported. He also said a ruling "unacceptable," according to the report. The election process was marred , with Lula's campaign reporting suspended public transportation in some key areas, prompting the court to extend voting . Bolsonaro's campaign had also requested an extension, citing heavy rains that shut polling stations in the south, a right-wing stronghold. The victory of the 80-year-old leftist, who had trailed in the first round, blocks a rightward shift in Latin America that U. President Donald Trump has backed. Trump, who had labeled Bolsonaro's lead in the first round as "a very, very big victory," would have preferred a Brazilian in closer alignment to U. S. foreign policy as Washington makes efforts to project U. S. power across the Americas, according to Daniela Portella Sampaio, senior research fellow for Latin American Security at the U. K. think tank Royal United Services Institute. Lula, who has publicly sparred with Trump, is set to govern from 2027 to 2030, facing a Congress where Bolsonaro's Liberal Party holds the largest bench in decades, and with a substantial public debt that he would need to stabilize.