President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is running for re-election in 2026, but his campaign is hampered by a combination of economic, social and legal challenges that opposition candidates are highlighting.
One of the most pressing issues is the record level of household debt. Since October 2025, Brazilians have committed 29% of their income to paying off financial debts, the highest share in at least two decades, according to the Central Bank. Consumer delinquency reached 6.9%, its highest level since 2012, driven largely by credit‑card revolving balances. A Datafolha survey showed that two‑thirds of Brazilians say they have debts and 45% describe their financial situation as tight or severe; among those earning up to three minimum wages, delinquency exceeds 7.5%. The government relaunched the Desenrola debt‑renegotiation program in May to try to curb defaults and boost its electoral appeal.
Evangelical voters remain a weak point for Lula. In a Datafolha hypothetical second‑turn match‑up with Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) released on 21 August, Lula leads 47% to 43% overall, but among evangelicals the advantage flips to 62% for Bolsonaro and 29% for the president. Lula’s standing with women is also complicated by past remarks deemed sexist, such as calling IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva a "mulherzinha" in April 2025 and saying he appointed a "pretty woman" to a ministry to improve relations with Congress. The country recorded a record 1,470 femicides in 2025, an average of four women killed per day, and Lula’s cabinet now has only eight women out of 38 ministers after recent departures—a point his wife Janja blamed on allied parties’ reluctance to nominate female candidates.
The backlog of benefit requests at the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) continues to dog the administration. Lula’s 2022 pledge to clear the queue has not been met; holdings peaked at 3.1 million earlier this year before the president of the institute was dismissed in April and replaced by career servant Ana Cristina Viana Silveira. By late August the INSS reported 1.28 million pending requests, a figure that opposition candidate Flávio Bolsonaro has incorporated into his "Brazil Without Queue" platform.
Legal scrutiny also surrounds Lula’s family. The Federal Police’s Operation Sem Desconto, which investigates alleged fraud that diverted roughly R$6.3 billion from INSS beneficiaries between 2019 and 2024, has led to the lifting of bank, tax and telephone secrecy on Lulinha, the president’s son. Though Lulinha has not been indicted, the Supreme Federal Court authorized three related inquiries in July, including suspicions of influence‑peddling in the Health Ministry and Dataprev. Lula has said his son would be investigated if any wrongdoing is found. Separately, the revelation that former chief of staff Marco Aurélio Santana Ribeiro (known as Marcola) received a R$249 000 personal loan from Roberta Luchsinger—a friend of Lulinha and associate of the "Careca do INSS" lobbyist—led to his departure from the PT campaign team; both parties describe the transaction as a settled loan with no irregularity.
Age and health have entered the debate. Lula will turn 81 in the week of the election, prompting commentary from outlets such as The Economist, which argued in December 2025 that his advanced age disqualifies him from running, and The Guardian, which noted his allies’ efforts to showcase him doing gym exercises to counter age‑related criticism. His main rival, Flávio Bolsonaro, is 45—the same age Lula was when he first ran for president in 1989—and has repeatedly highlighted the age gap, likening Lula to an "Opala" that "won’t take you anywhere."
Finally, Lula’s approval ratings have never returned to the levels he enjoyed after leaving office in 2010. The same Datafolha poll of 21 August showed 41% of respondents rating his government as bad or terrible, compared with 33% who view it as good or excellent; 25% consider it regular. On a straight approve‑disapprove question, 50% said they disapprove of his management while 47% approve, within a two‑point margin of error.
These factors collectively shape a challenging electoral landscape for the incumbent as Brazil heads toward the 2026 presidential vote.