Daniel Scioli, the Argentine ambassador to Brazil, referred this Sunday to the results of the general elections in that country, in which Lula da Silva won by a narrow margin, and assured that he never believed “that the difference was 14 or 15 points as the polls said”.
“I never believed that the difference was 14 or 15 points as the polls said. I didn’t see it, I didn’t feel it. A few days ago I was in São Paulo and the street told me something else, something different from what I read in the newspapers,” he said. Scioli during a television interview with the IP channel.
For the Argentine ambassador, Bolsonaro strengthened his campaign by highlighting economic achievements and promoting certain traditional values with which a large part of the Brazilian population feels represented.
“Bolsonaro placed a lot of emphasis on the recovery of the economy, which is true. And the values to which he refers at all times, that of the family or that of the anti-drug message, for example, also had an influence,” he explained.
According to the Argentine diplomat, both Lula and the current president are going to develop new strategies for the ballot on October 30.
“Now a month of great intensity is opening, very strong, something that was already seen coming in the debates because they came up with everything. Bolsonaro has the challenge of facing a new election with another strategy, because Lula made a great election by reaching the 48 points,” he analyzed.
When asked regarding his preference for the second round, Scioli dodged the question and highlighted the achievements of Alberto Fernández’s management to improve trade relations with Brazil.
“The president asked me to have the best possible relationship with Brazil and I have dedicated myself to it all the time. We recovered a relationship that was very bad and Brazil gave us all the electricity we needed during the winter to avoid shocks, for example,” said.
“Everyone knows that we have a great political relationship with Lula, both our president and vice president. But with Bolsonaro I had many meetings, whenever it was necessary he and his ministers received me. The important thing in this stage of global crisis is to strengthen the region and stick together,” added Scioli.
Minutes following Scioli’s message, President Alberto Fernández congratulated Lula da Silva for his “victory in the first round” and sent his “sincere respect” to the people of Brazil for their “democratic expression” during this electoral Sunday.
“I congratulate my dear Lula for his victory in the first round and I convey my sincere respect to the people of Brazil for their deep democratic expression,” Fernández wrote on his Twitter account.
The Argentine president also shared a photo of him shaking hands with the Brazilian candidate.
Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won tonight in the first round of the Brazilian elections by more than four percentage points over President Jair Bolsonaro, but the bid for power will be defined on October 30 in a ballot, confirmed the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).
With 98.83 percent of the votes counted. Lula obtained 48.16 percent and Bolsonaro 43.43 percent.
