Brazil / Election: At 80, Lula wins a fourth presidential term; his opponent contests the results

Incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the presidential election in Brazil on Sunday. His victory defied the polls, which had not predicted such an outcome.

This victory is historic. Having come in behind his opponent in the first round, Lula managed to reverse the trend in the second round to win at the polls. A first in Brazil's electoral history.

With 51,76% of the votes cast, Lula da Silva is set to begin a new four-year term as President of Brazil.

The president, who will turn 81 next week, is seeing his victory contested by his opponent Flávio Bolsonaro, who is challenging the election results. Bolsonaro is none other than the son of the former Brazilian president.

The conservative candidate declared he would seek to have the elections annulled. "It is impossible to recognize the elections," he said in Brasilia, his face grim. According to him, "many things remain to be clarified" after the legal dispute that had led to the extension of voting operations.

Cheick Omar Ouedraogo