Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has openly embraced the socialist label, telling supporters it makes him proud. His political party, Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT), has cultivated a close relationship with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) since at least 2003.
Lula headlined the 2023 São Paulo Forum, a gathering of leftist groups across the hemisphere that he helped create decades ago. "I began talking with comrades from the Communist Party of Cuba and with Comrade Fidel Castro, and we raised the possibility of holding a meeting with the entire Latin American Left," Lula said of the forum's origins. "That was how the idea of calling the first São Paulo Forum was born."
The PT and DSA met at the 2003 Socialist International Congress, where they signed the Declaration of São Paulo, aimed at uniting progressive organizations to build what the declaration called a new world order. The two organizations have deepened ties since then.
Brazil holds presidential elections in one month. Lula, seeking a rare fourth term, leads conservative challenger Jair Bolsonaro 46 percent to 44 percent in a recent poll. A victory would strengthen a socialist government that has actively supported the spread of leftist movements throughout the Western Hemisphere.
The political landscape in Latin America has shifted since the PT's heyday during the "Pink Tide" era of the early 2000s. Conservative candidates including El Salvador's Nayib Bukele and Argentina's Javier Milei have gained ground, challenging the socialist dominance that once defined the region.
