Dilma Rousseff re-elected Brazil president
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Charles Brown
Oct 28, 2014, 8:15:43 AM10/28/14
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Long Live the South American Revolution !
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2014/10/dilma-rousseff-re-elected-brazil-president-2014102621945179938.html
Americas
Dilma Rousseff re-elected Brazil president
Incumbent president defeats opposition rival Aecio Neves with a narrow
margin in a bitterly fought run-off vote.
Last updated: 27 Oct 2014 10:00
Brazil's incumbent president Dilma Rousseff has won a second term,
defeating her opposition rival Aecio Neves with a narrow margin in an
election that largely split the country between the poor north and
wealthier south.
Rousseff, the first woman president of the world's seventh-largest
economy, took 51.6 percent of the vote to 48.4 percent for business
favourite Neves in a run-off election.
The 66-year-old, a former leftist guerrilla who was jailed and
tortured for fighting the 1964-1985 dictatorship, pledged to reconcile
Brazil, reboot the economy and fight corruption after the victory of
her Workers' Party (PT).
"This president is open to dialogue. This is the top priority of my
second term," she told supporters in the capital Brasilia, clad in
white alongside two-term predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
After four years of sluggish economic growth culminating in recession
this year, she admitted her own report card had to improve.
"I want to be a much better president than I have been to date," she
said, issuing "a call for peace and unity" after a bitter campaign of
low blows and mutual recriminations.
Neves concedes defeat
Neves, who conceded defeat in a speech to his supporters, called
Rousseff to congratulate her.
"I told her the priority should be to unite Brazil," he told
disappointed supporters in Belo Horizonte, where he served two terms
as governor of Minas Gerais state.
The race was widely seen as a referendum on 12 years of PT government,
with voters weighing the party's landmark social gains against Neves's
promise of economic revival.
The PT endeared itself to the masses with landmark social programmes
that have lifted 40 million Brazilians from poverty, increased wages
and brought unemployment to a record-low 4.9 percent.
But the outlook has darkened since Rousseff won election in 2010. She
has presided over rising inflation amid protests against corruption,
record spending on the World Cup and poor public services.
Rousseff led the first round earlier in October with 41.5 percent
compared to 33.6 percent for Neves. Prominent environmentalist Marina
Silva was in third place with just 21 percent of the votes.
________________________________
ANALYSIS FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT
Gabriel Elizondo in Belo Horizonte
It was billed as one of the closest and most unpredictable elections
of modern times, and it delivered. It was simply historic; an election
political junkies in this country will be talking about for decades to
come.
A few things stuck out for me:
In 2010, Rousseff won by 12 percent and 12 million votes. On Sunday,
she won by 3 percent and 3.5 million votes, the narrowest presidential
victory in Brazil’s history. The opposition PSDB party has made great
strides in the past four year, as Neves defeated Rousseff by 6.8
million votes in important Sao Paulo state.
But the opposition failed to make inroads in the populace,
economically growing northeast of the country.
Here’s a troubling number for you: In an election decided by 3.5
million votes, 37 million Brazilians either didn’t vote or voted for
nobody. Perspective: That’s about two Canada’s.
If the opposition could have just got a fraction of those people to
the polls on their side, they could have won easily. But they didn’t.
They’ll have themselves to answer to on that. Likewise, Rousseff now
finds herself governing a country that is largely shrugging its
shoulders at her.
Give Rousseff credit, she was battered and bruised but managed to
prevail sticking to her message focus on the poor and lower middle
class. Victory in politics is all that matters, and she got it. Give
Neves credit for coming so close. Just two months ago – an eternity in
this country – there were rumours he’d drop out as he was polling so
low. He's an opposition candidate, and mainstream and modern.
The opposition has a lot of good to take away from this election once
they recover emotionally.
But Rousseff has the presidency, if not a mandate. Balancing both
might be even more difficult than winning.
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2014/10/dilma-rousseff-re-elected-brazil-president-2014102621945179938.html
Americas
Dilma Rousseff re-elected Brazil president
Incumbent president defeats opposition rival Aecio Neves with a narrow
margin in a bitterly fought run-off vote.
Last updated: 27 Oct 2014 10:00
Brazil's incumbent president Dilma Rousseff has won a second term,
defeating her opposition rival Aecio Neves with a narrow margin in an
election that largely split the country between the poor north and
wealthier south.
Rousseff, the first woman president of the world's seventh-largest
economy, took 51.6 percent of the vote to 48.4 percent for business
favourite Neves in a run-off election.
The 66-year-old, a former leftist guerrilla who was jailed and
tortured for fighting the 1964-1985 dictatorship, pledged to reconcile
Brazil, reboot the economy and fight corruption after the victory of
her Workers' Party (PT).
"This president is open to dialogue. This is the top priority of my
second term," she told supporters in the capital Brasilia, clad in
white alongside two-term predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
After four years of sluggish economic growth culminating in recession
this year, she admitted her own report card had to improve.
"I want to be a much better president than I have been to date," she
said, issuing "a call for peace and unity" after a bitter campaign of
low blows and mutual recriminations.
Neves concedes defeat
Neves, who conceded defeat in a speech to his supporters, called
Rousseff to congratulate her.
"I told her the priority should be to unite Brazil," he told
disappointed supporters in Belo Horizonte, where he served two terms
as governor of Minas Gerais state.
The race was widely seen as a referendum on 12 years of PT government,
with voters weighing the party's landmark social gains against Neves's
promise of economic revival.
The PT endeared itself to the masses with landmark social programmes
that have lifted 40 million Brazilians from poverty, increased wages
and brought unemployment to a record-low 4.9 percent.
But the outlook has darkened since Rousseff won election in 2010. She
has presided over rising inflation amid protests against corruption,
record spending on the World Cup and poor public services.
Rousseff led the first round earlier in October with 41.5 percent
compared to 33.6 percent for Neves. Prominent environmentalist Marina
Silva was in third place with just 21 percent of the votes.
________________________________
ANALYSIS FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT
Gabriel Elizondo in Belo Horizonte
It was billed as one of the closest and most unpredictable elections
of modern times, and it delivered. It was simply historic; an election
political junkies in this country will be talking about for decades to
come.
A few things stuck out for me:
In 2010, Rousseff won by 12 percent and 12 million votes. On Sunday,
she won by 3 percent and 3.5 million votes, the narrowest presidential
victory in Brazil’s history. The opposition PSDB party has made great
strides in the past four year, as Neves defeated Rousseff by 6.8
million votes in important Sao Paulo state.
But the opposition failed to make inroads in the populace,
economically growing northeast of the country.
Here’s a troubling number for you: In an election decided by 3.5
million votes, 37 million Brazilians either didn’t vote or voted for
nobody. Perspective: That’s about two Canada’s.
If the opposition could have just got a fraction of those people to
the polls on their side, they could have won easily. But they didn’t.
They’ll have themselves to answer to on that. Likewise, Rousseff now
finds herself governing a country that is largely shrugging its
shoulders at her.
Give Rousseff credit, she was battered and bruised but managed to
prevail sticking to her message focus on the poor and lower middle
class. Victory in politics is all that matters, and she got it. Give
Neves credit for coming so close. Just two months ago – an eternity in
this country – there were rumours he’d drop out as he was polling so
low. He's an opposition candidate, and mainstream and modern.
The opposition has a lot of good to take away from this election once
they recover emotionally.
But Rousseff has the presidency, if not a mandate. Balancing both
might be even more difficult than winning.
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