Brazilian odyssey: a look at Lula over the years

Brazil's Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, on the cusp of 81 and hoping to nab a fourth presidential term, once likened the events of his life to a miracle.

The first working-class president of Latin America's largest country made history when he led massive strikes against the 1964-1985 dictatorship as a trade union leader.

This titan of the left boasted record-breaking domestic popularity ratings at the close of his second term in 2010.

Corruption charges later tarnished his image and even landed him in prison before being annulled, paving the way for Lula's spectacular comeback as president in 2023.

An old friend, an expert and a fierce opponent look back on snapshots of the political giant's life.

In March 1979, as a hardy metalworker union leader in Sao Paulo state, Lula led 170,000 people in a strike against Brazil's ruthless military dictatorship.

Nelson Campanholo, 87, met 22-year-old Lula in 1967 and worked alongside him during those momentous rallies.

"We organized a meeting at the union headquarters, it was packed to the rafters, and we realized there were tens of thousands of people outside," Campanholo told AFP, recalling that the crowd ended up at a massive stadium.

Lula "had a loudspeaker, but the sound didn't carry far enough, and workers had to repeat his speech to the others so it would reach those in the back," he said.

The current president "has a natural charisma; he's been like that since I've known him," according to his long-time chum.

During the 1979 strike, "we witnessed the birth of a leader," Josue Medeiros, a political scientist at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, told AFP.

Lula was jailed for several weeks following the strikes, as was Campanholo.

On his fourth go at the presidency, Lula was elected on October 27, 2002.

The entry of a former metalworker into the country's top office marked "an important moment confirming that Brazil can be a democratic country," said Medeiros.

"It was very moving to see one of our own become president," said Campanholo.

During his first two terms, Lula rose to prominence in international politics, cementing his status as a leader of the Global South.

A photo dated March 2009 shows him laughing heartily alongside then US president Barack Obama on the sidelines of a meeting at the White House.

The picture makes for a "powerful symbol," according to Medeiros.

"With the first Black president of the United States, it represents the meeting of two figures who came from the bottom and rose to lead two of the largest democracies in the world," he said.

Obama sang Lula's praises to the press during a G20 summit in London a month later.

"That's my man right here," he said.

"I love this guy. He's the most popular politician on Earth."

Less than a decade later, on April 7, 2018, Lula handed himself in to serve a corruption sentence in a Brazilian prison.

"That day, I felt that justice had been done and that the institutions had worked, because a person who had held the highest office in the state was imprisoned for having stolen money," right-wing lawmaker Kim Kataguiri told AFP.

From 2014, Kataguiri helped organize massive demonstrations against the left in power.

Lula spent 580 days behind bars until the Supreme Court annulled his conviction on procedural grounds in 2021.

Lula dived right back into politics upon his release and was inaugurated for a third presidential term on January 1, 2023.

The triumphant leader was accompanied by renowned Indigenous chief Raoni Metuktire and civil society representatives as he made his way to the presidential palace that day.

His victory against far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro was a narrow one, however.

"This photo is a symbol of unity, but that unity did not last, as the country remains extremely polarized," said Medeiros.

Now running for an unprecedented fourth term, Lula faces Jair Bolsonaro's son, Flavio Bolsonaro, in a first-round election on Sunday.