Lula’s Leap Into the Future
The people’s president won by combining 20th-century politics with 21st-century campaigning.
TL;DR
- Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the Brazilian presidential election after a runoff against Flávio Bolsonaro.
- Congressman André Janones was instrumental in shifting Lula's campaign strategy to digital spaces.
- Janones created and expanded a WhatsApp channel, 'Exército do Lula', which became a major command center for mobilization.
- The digital strategy aimed to engage dormant voters and turn passive audiences into active political messengers.
- Lula's personal life story and experiences in the working world proved to be a significant political asset, especially when communicated effectively online.
- The campaign needed to adapt from traditional tactics to more responsive and combative digital engagement to counter the far right's online presence.