Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known simply as Lula, is a Brazilian politician who has served as the president of Brazil. He was born on 27 October 1945 in Pernambuco and grew up in a poor family. Lula quit school after the second grade and started working as a metalworker when he was a teenager.

Lula became an important leader for workers' rights and helped start the Workers' Party in 1980. He ran for president several times before finally winning in 2002. During his first time as president from 2003 to 2011, he created programs that helped many Brazilians live better lives. He was very popular and left office with an approval rating of 80%.

Lula faced some legal troubles and spent time in prison, but his convictions were later overturned. In 2022, he ran for president again and won, becoming the oldest person to be sworn in as Brazil's president at the age of 77. Since 2023, he has been working on new reforms to help Brazil's economy and environment.

Early life

Luiz Inácio da Silva was born on 27 October 1945 in Caetés, a small place near Recife, the capital of Pernambuco, a state in the Northeast of Brazil. He was one of eight children in a family of farmers. His family moved to São Paulo when he was seven. They found that his father had started a new family there.

Lula grew up in a small room behind a bar. He didn’t get much schooling and had to work from a very young age. He later added the nickname “Lula” to his name.

Personal life

Lula has been married three times and has had relationships that led to children. His first wife, Maria de Lourdes Ribeiro, passed away in 1971. In 1974, he had a daughter with Miriam Cordeiro, and later that year married Marisa Letícia Rocco Casa, with whom he had three sons and also adopted her child from a previous marriage. Marisa passed away in 2017. Later, he met and married Rosângela da Silva, known as Janja, in 2022.

Lula is a Catholic and supports the football club SC Corinthians Paulista.

Education and work

Lula did not have much schooling. He stopped going to school after the second grade and began working at the age of eight, selling goods on the street. By the time he was twelve, he also shined shoes for people.

In 1960, when he was fourteen, Lula got his first formal job in a warehouse. Soon after, in 1961, he started learning to work with metal machines in a factory that made screws. This job helped him see how important it was for workers to stick together. Later, he worked at a bigger metal company called Villares Metals S.A from 1966 to 1980. During this time, he got involved in helping workers and took on many roles in the union.

Union career

Lula was inspired by his brother, who was part of a political group, to join the workers' movement. He worked at a metal factory and became leader of the metalworkers' union in the cities of São Bernardo do Campo and Diadema. These cities are where many car factories, like Ford, Volkswagen, Toyota, and Mercedes-Benz, are located.

During the late 1970s, when Brazil was ruled by the military, Lula helped plan big strikes. The government said these strikes were not allowed, and Lula was put in jail for a month. After the military government ended, he received a special pension for this.

Political career

On 10 February 1980, a group of academics and union leaders, including Lula, started the Workers' Party, a left-wing group with progressive ideas. In 1983, he helped create the Central Única dos Trabalhadores, a trade union group.

Elections

Lula first tried to become a leader in 1982 for the state of São Paulo, but he did not win. In 1986, he got a job in the National Congress with many votes.

In 1989, Lula tried to become president. Another person, Fernando Collor de Mello, won instead. Lula tried again in the next two elections but did not win. In 2002, Lula won and became the country’s first leftist president after the military dictatorship in Brazil. He won again in 2006.

In 2018, Lula could not run for president because of a legal problem. Another person, Fernando Haddad, ran instead but did not win.

Electoral history

First presidency (2003–2011)

Lula served two terms as president of Brazil from 2003 to 2011. During his time in office, he talked about feeling a big responsibility to prove he could lead well, especially because he came from a simple background. He wanted to show that ordinary people and those with less education could also govern successfully.

Many of the changes Lula planned for education and social programs were started but not fully carried out. Some people in his party disagreed with his more moderate approaches and left to form new groups. He worked with older, traditional leaders in politics, which disappointed some supporters.

Lula started several programs to help schools and students. He provided free meals to millions of children and tried to make education free for students who needed it most. He also wanted to make sure every child could go to school, but this didn’t work perfectly everywhere.

One of Lula’s biggest goals was to help end hunger in Brazil. He created programs to support poor families and give them help to improve their lives. Even though some of these programs started slowly, they did help reduce hunger and poor nutrition in the country. He also began big projects to build homes and improve living conditions in areas where people lived in tough conditions.

Lula’s time as president coincided with a period when Brazil’s economy grew strongly because global prices for things like soy, coffee, and iron ore went up. This helped Brazil pay off debts early and support many social programs. However, there were also problems with corruption and delays in big infrastructure projects.

Lula worked to protect forests and wildlife, though not all his efforts succeeded. He also made efforts to build stronger relationships with other countries around the world, supporting peace and development in many places.

Corruption scandals and controversy

See also: List of scandals in Brazil

Lula faced many questions about his time in office. One big question was about money and voting. Some people said he knew about wrong things that happened but he said he did not.

Some of the people who worked for him were found to have done wrong things. One of them was a leader in his party who had to go to jail for a long time.

People also said that Lula used friends who were on the side of the government to help him stay in power. He also tried to make new rules about movies and TV, but these rules did not work.

Lula was also asked about a man who was wanted for hurting people in another country. Lula decided not to send this man back to face those charges.

Later, Lula and some of his team were asked about money that may have been paid to help pass certain laws. A judge said there was not enough proof that Lula did anything wrong.

In 2014, Brazil started looking into a big problem with money at an oil company. This led to many people being asked about what they knew. Lula was one of them. Some said he helped get money for his friends, but Lula said this was not true and that he was being treated unfairly.

Lula was found to have taken money to help fix his house, and was told to spend time in jail. He said this was not fair and that he was being treated this way because he wanted to be president again.

Later, a court said that the judge who made the decision may not have been fair, and so Lula was let out of jail. The court also said that the cases against Lula should be looked at again in a different place.

Between terms (2011–2023)

Health

In October 2011, it was found that Lula had a growth in his voice box that needed treatment. He received medical care and announced he was better by March 2012.

In January 2021, Lula tested positive for a sickness that made many people very ill, but he got better without needing to stay in a hospital. In March 2021, he received a medicine to help protect him from getting very sick again. In October 2023, Lula had surgery to help with pain in his hip and also had a small operation to improve how his eyelids looked.

2018 presidential campaign

In 2017, Lula said he would try to become president again in the election of 2018. He traveled with many supporters through different parts of Brazil. Even though he was in prison in April 2018, his party still let him be their candidate for president.

In August 2018, Lula’s name was taken off the list of candidates by the group that decides who can run for president in Brazil. Because of this, Fernando Haddad became the candidate instead, and Lula supported him.

Second presidency (2023–present)

2022 election

Lula decided to run for a third term as president in the 2022 election, facing the current president, Jair Bolsonaro. In the first round of voting, Lula came in first with 48% of the votes, moving to a second round against Bolsonaro, who got 43%. In the second round, Lula won with 50.89% of the votes, the closest race in Brazil’s history. He was sworn in on January 1, 2023, becoming the first president elected three times and the oldest president at the time of taking office.

Tenure

Lula focused on rebuilding the country after an economic crisis, supporting democracy, peace, and economic growth. He aimed to reduce poverty, improve education, and create a national culture system. He also planned to expand housing programs.

Foreign policy

Lula met with leaders from China, Cuba, Iran, Nicaragua, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and others to strengthen Brazil’s international relationships. He discussed many topics, including trade, peace, and cooperation.

Economy

Lula brought back a program to help poor families, known as Bolsa Família, which was weakened under Bolsonaro. He also announced big plans to invest in infrastructure, including homes, energy, and roads. His goal was to help the economy grow and fight hunger by creating food banks and supporting local farms.

Environment

Lula promised to stop illegal logging and reduce deforestation in the Amazon. His plans included creating a sustainable economy in the region and protecting indigenous lands. However, some of his actions, like offering land for oil extraction, caused concern about the environment.

Health problems

Lula faced some health issues, including a fall that led to a small brain injury. He also had surgery for a brain hemorrhage and later needed treatment for inner ear problems and eye surgery.

Political positions and philosophy

See also: Lulism

Lula supports ideas known as "socialism of the 21st century," though his approach is often seen as similar to social liberalism. He has shown a moderate, centre-left economic view and has expressed support for the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. He is personally against certain medical choices but believes they should be handled as a public health issue.

Lula has spoken out about support for Palestine, calling for a two-state solution where Palestine is fully recognized as its own country. He has also talked about the situation in the Gaza Strip, emphasizing the need for peace and fairness for all people involved.

Honours and awards

Since 2003, Lula has received several important awards. In 2008, he was given the UNESCO Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize for working toward peace. In 2012, he received the Four Freedoms Award. In 2025, a type of Brazilian frog called Brachycephalus lulai was named after him.

National honours

State honours

Foreign honours

Foreign awards

In popular culture

A famous Brazilian director made a film in 2009 called Lula, Son of Brazil. The movie shows Lula's life up until he was 35 years old. Even though it cost a lot to make, it didn’t do well with viewers or critics.

Lula also appears in a Netflix series named The Mechanism, where he is called João Higino. In 2019, a documentary called The Edge of Democracy explored Lula’s time in politics and big changes in Brazil. Lula is also in another documentary from 2024 called Apocalypse in the Tropics.