Like the Phoenix, they rose again from the ashes. They are both one-time helmsmen of their respective country who lost their handle on power. And from the throne, they fell into infamy that threatened a lifetime of obscurity. It is from that infamy they’ve been re-recruited to the throne. They’re what you would call ‘comeback kids.’
One of these is Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil. He was a labour unionist who became the country’s president in 2002 and won reelection in 2006. His time in power was really good for Brazil, and he left office in 2010 with 83 percent approval rating. Key to his popularity in office was how he lifted millions of Brazilians out of poverty. He was also amenable to international collaboration, unlike the insular far-right incumbent, President Jair Bolsonaro
Lula’s reputation, however, took a hit when in 2017, federal prosecutors implicated him in their probe of corruption allegation involving Brazil’s national oil firm, the Petrobas. He was sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison – a conviction that disqualified him from ever again seeking public office. He had spent 19months of that sentence in jail before Brazil’s supreme court in 2021 overruled the conviction, saying Lula’s right to fair trial was compromised. It was that acquittal that cleared the way for him to run in the 2022 election against President Bolsonaro. In the run-off penultimate weekend, Lula polled 50.9 percent of the votes to narrowly defeat Bolsonaro who polled 49.1 percent, and he is set to take power again by 1st January 2023. Bolsonaro’s supporters, however, did not give up the fight. Early last week, thousands of truckers – a politically powerful group in Brazil that overwhelmingly supports the incumbent – blocked highways across 23 of Brazil’s 26 states, demanding military intervention to prevent Lula’s return to power. Bolsonaro was widely expected to explicitly concede the poll, but he didn’t do that. Late last week, he only appealed to the truckers to back down; and nearly all his people including Vice President Hamilton Mourao have reached out to Lula’s camp for transition talks. But Bolsonaro is yet to overtly concede, although that won’t stop Lula.
Another dramatic comeback is by former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is on course to return to power. Projections from recent Israeli election gave Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc a slim majority of seats over his centre-left opponents led by current Prime Minister Yair Lapid. Such a result would mark a dramatic comeback for Netanyahu, toppled last year after 12 straight years in power. ‘Bibi,’ as Netanyahu is fondly called is a hardline Jewish nationalist. But he is also currently on trial for alleged bribery, fraud and breach of trust – charges he denies. His return to power could upend that trial as his coalition has said it would reform the law. Talk about being lucky!