How Brazil's changing working class is reshaping the presidential race

What the report says

BBC World News reports that Brazil’s presidential runoff on Sunday is being shaped by a changing working class, as President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva faces a challenge from right-wing candidate Flávio Bolsonaro after Bolsonaro led the first round. The story focuses on places such as Osasco, a once-industrial city near São Paulo that has shifted toward shopping centres, services and app-based work, and where many voters who backed Lula in 2022 moved toward Bolsonaro this month.

According to the report, union leader Gilberto Almazan says deindustrialisation has weakened the traditional labour base that once powered Lula’s politics. Many voters interviewed by BBC say they are frustrated by inflation, taxes, crime and corruption, and want change even if they cannot point to a single policy they favour. The article also notes that abstention was high in the first round, with 33 million people not voting.

Lula’s campaign is now trying to expand turnout through large rallies and social media, while highlighting his record on jobs, welfare and poverty reduction. The BBC says Lula, 80, is also using online content to counter criticism about his age. In poorer areas such as Rio’s Maré favela, support for Lula remains stronger because of his social programmes, though concerns about security and police operations remain.

The report adds broader context: Brazil’s growing evangelical movement has become influential in politics, and the changing economy has made many workers more individualised and less tied to unions. The article argues that these shifts help explain why Lula’s traditional coalition is under pressure in the runoff.