The life of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is one of the most remarkable and controversial stories in contemporary Latin American politics. Born into poverty in northeastern Brazil, Lula worked as a metalworker and became a trade union leader before helping establish the Workers’ Party and eventually reaching the presidency.
His career spans more than four decades of Brazilian history, from labor protests under military rule to democratization, electoral defeats, three presidential victories, major social programs, corruption scandals, imprisonment and an extraordinary political comeback.
Lula’s political journey did not end with his return to the presidency in January 2023. In 2026, at the age of 80, he ran for a fourth non-consecutive term. In the first round on October 4, he received 45.16% of the valid vote and advanced to the October 25 runoff against Flávio Bolsonaro, who finished first with 47.03%.
Lula’s Origins and Childhood
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was born on October 27, 1945, in Garanhuns, in the northeastern state of Pernambuco. He was the seventh of eight children born to Aristides Inácio da Silva and Eurídice Ferreira de Mello, better known as Dona Lindu.
In December 1952, his mother left Pernambuco with her children to escape drought, hunger and poverty. The family travelled for 13 days to the state of São Paulo aboard a pau de arara, a truck improvised to carry passengers over long distances.
The family initially lived near Guarujá before moving to the city of São Paulo in 1956. There, Lula, his mother and his siblings shared a room behind a bar in the Ipiranga neighborhood.
Lula received limited formal education and began working at a young age. His early jobs included working in a dye shop, shining shoes and serving as an office messenger. At 14, he obtained his first formally registered job.
From Poverty to Factory Work
Lula later attended a vocational course at Brazil’s National Service for Industrial Training, known as Senai, where he trained to operate mechanical lathes and qualified as a metalworker.
He eventually found employment at Indústrias Villares, one of Brazil’s leading metalworking companies, located in São Bernardo do Campo. This city was part of the industrial region surrounding São Paulo known as the ABC Paulista.
While working in industry, Lula lost part of the little finger on his left hand in a workplace accident. His experience in São Paulo’s factories exposed him to low wages, difficult working conditions and the limited protections available to workers.
Through his older brother, José Ferreira da Silva, known as Frei Chico, Lula became involved with the trade union movement. This decision would eventually transform him from a factory worker into a nationally recognized political figure.
Lula and Brazil’s Trade Union Movement
In 1969, Lula was elected as an alternate member of the Metalworkers’ Union of São Bernardo do Campo and Diadema. He became the union’s first secretary in 1972 and was elected president in 1975 with 92% of the vote, representing approximately 100,000 workers.
During the late 1970s, Lula led major industrial strikes demanding better wages and working conditions. These protests challenged not only factory owners but also the economic policies of Brazil’s military dictatorship.
The strikes held between 1978 and 1980 made Lula a national figure. They became part of a broader movement calling for political rights, democratic participation and an end to authoritarian rule.
In 1980, Lula was arrested and charged under the National Security Law because of his role in the strikes. Although he was initially sentenced to prison, Brazil’s Military Supreme Court later released him. The experience strengthened his symbolic importance within the opposition to military rule.
The Foundation of the Workers’ Party
In 1980, Lula helped establish the Workers’ Party, commonly known by its Portuguese initials, PT.
The new party brought together trade unionists, social activists, intellectuals, progressive Catholics and political opponents of the military dictatorship. It sought to create a political organization capable of directly representing workers and historically marginalized communities.
Lula also participated in the Diretas Já campaign, which demanded the restoration of direct presidential elections. In 1986, he was elected as a federal deputy representing the state of São Paulo and participated in the Constituent Assembly that developed Brazil’s 1988 Constitution.
Lula’s First Presidential Campaigns
Lula first ran for president in 1989, during Brazil’s first direct presidential election following the military dictatorship.
He reached the second round but lost to Fernando Collor de Mello. Lula ran again in 1994 and 1998, losing both elections to Fernando Henrique Cardoso.
These defeats persuaded Lula and the PT to broaden their political coalition. Lula gradually adopted a more moderate public image and sought to reassure businesses, middle-class voters and centrist political groups.
This transformation proved decisive in the 2002 presidential election.
Lula’s Victory in the 2002 Election
In 2002, Lula finally won the presidency and became the first member of the Workers’ Party to lead Brazil.
His election carried enormous symbolic significance. A former factory worker with no university degree, born into one of the poorest regions of the country, had reached Brazil’s highest political office.
Lula took office on January 1, 2003. He was re-elected in 2006 and remained president until January 1, 2011, completing two consecutive terms.
Lula’s First Two Governments
During Lula’s first two terms, Brazil experienced strong economic growth, supported partly by rising international demand for commodities.
His governments combined macroeconomic stability with increases in the minimum wage, expanded access to credit, public investment and social programs for lower-income families.
Millions of Brazilians experienced improved living conditions, while poverty and extreme poverty declined. Lula also strengthened Brazil’s international position, promoting greater cooperation among emerging economies and supporting the growing importance of the BRICS group.
His foreign policy sought to give Brazil greater autonomy in its relationships with the United States, China, Europe, Africa and other countries in the Global South.
Social Policies and Bolsa Família
The program most closely associated with Lula’s governments is Bolsa Família, a conditional cash-transfer system supporting low-income households.
Families received financial assistance while complying with conditions related to children’s school attendance and basic healthcare. The program was designed to address immediate poverty while reducing its transmission between generations.
Bolsa Família became a central symbol of the PT’s social policies. It also helped strengthen Lula’s support in Brazil’s poorest regions, particularly in the northeast.
Other initiatives included the Zero Hunger program, increases in the minimum wage, expanded access to higher education and the creation of new federal universities.
Political Scandals During Lula’s Presidency
Lula’s first period in office was also affected by major political scandals.
In 2005, the Mensalão scandal exposed an alleged system of illegal payments involving members of the governing coalition. Several senior members of the Workers’ Party were eventually convicted.
Lula denied knowing about the illegal activities and said that he had been betrayed by members of his government. Although the scandal damaged the PT, it did not prevent Lula from winning re-election in 2006.
When his second term ended, Lula retained considerable personal popularity. Because the Constitution prevented him from immediately seeking a third consecutive term, he supported Dilma Rousseff, who won the 2010 election.
Operation Car Wash and Lula’s Imprisonment
After leaving office, Lula became involved in investigations connected to Operation Car Wash, known in Portuguese as Lava Jato. The investigation uncovered an extensive network of corruption involving the state-controlled oil company Petrobras, construction businesses and political figures.
In 2017, Judge Sergio Moro convicted Lula of passive corruption and money laundering in a case involving an apartment in Guarujá. The sentence was upheld on appeal, and Lula began serving his prison term on April 7, 2018.
Lula remained at the Federal Police headquarters in Curitiba for 580 days. He was released on November 8, 2019, after Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court ruled against imprisonment before all possible appeals had been exhausted.
His imprisonment prevented him from taking part in the 2018 presidential election, even though opinion polls had placed him among the leading potential candidates.
The case deeply divided Brazil. Supporters of the investigation regarded Lula’s conviction as evidence that powerful politicians could be held accountable. His supporters argued that the proceedings were politically motivated and intended to prevent his return to power.
The Annulment of Lula’s Convictions
In 2021, Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court annulled Lula’s Operation Car Wash convictions, ruling that the federal court in Curitiba did not have jurisdiction over the cases.
The decision restored Lula’s political rights. It did not constitute a separate judgment declaring him innocent of every allegation, but it invalidated the convictions that had prevented him from standing for public office.
The Supreme Federal Court also determined that Judge Sergio Moro had not acted impartially in one of Lula’s cases. In 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Committee concluded that the investigation and prosecution had violated Lula’s right to an impartial tribunal, his privacy and his political rights.
With his convictions annulled and his political rights restored, Lula was able to run for president again.
Victory over Jair Bolsonaro in 2022
In 2022, Lula challenged incumbent president Jair Bolsonaro in one of the most polarized elections in Brazilian history.
Lula built a broad political coalition that included left-wing parties, centrist groups and moderate political figures concerned about the country’s democratic institutions. He selected Geraldo Alckmin, a former political opponent and former governor of São Paulo, as his vice-presidential running mate.
Lula narrowly won the runoff and returned to office on January 1, 2023, beginning his third non-consecutive presidential term.
Lula’s Third Presidential Term
Lula’s third administration inherited a deeply polarized country and a Congress in which conservative parties held considerable influence.
The government relaunched Bolsa Família, supported infrastructure and industrial investment, increased the minimum wage and restored protection of the Amazon rainforest as a major policy priority.
Internationally, Lula sought to reinforce Brazil’s diplomatic independence and strengthen its position within the BRICS group. His government attempted to balance relations with China, the United States, Europe and other Latin American countries.
However, the administration also faced criticism over public spending, slow economic growth, the cost of living and controversies involving sections of the government.
Lula and Brazil’s 2026 Presidential Election
In 2026, Lula ran for a fourth non-consecutive presidential term.
In the October 4 first round, Flávio Bolsonaro of the Liberal Party received 47.03% of the valid vote, amounting to 56,104,503 votes. Lula finished with 45.16%, or 53,879,538 votes.
Because neither candidate received more than half of the valid votes, the election advanced to a runoff scheduled for October 25, 2026.
The result placed Lula almost 2.2 million votes behind his opponent. It also highlighted Brazil’s continuing political polarization, with Lula maintaining particularly strong support in the northeast while Flávio Bolsonaro performed strongly across much of the south, southeast and center-west.
The runoff campaign has focused on the cost of living, public security, corruption, social programs and the country’s economic outlook.
To learn more about his proposals, read our analysis of Lula’s 2026 election platform and campaign promises.
Lula’s Political Legacy
Lula remains one of the most influential and divisive figures in modern Brazilian history.
For supporters, he represents the possibility of improving living conditions through social policies, higher wages, public investment and a more active state. His first governments are remembered for poverty reduction, social mobility and Brazil’s growing international influence.
For critics, Lula represents a political system associated with high public spending, patronage and corruption scandals involving the Workers’ Party and its allies.
Regardless of political perspective, his personal journey remains remarkable. Lula rose from an impoverished childhood in Pernambuco to factory work and trade union activism before winning the presidency three times and campaigning for a fourth term in 2026.
His career reflects many of the central tensions in modern Brazil: inequality and social mobility, democracy and political polarization, economic development and fiscal responsibility, as well as the difficult relationship between justice and political power.