'Most popular politician on earth' barred from running for president
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Sao Paulo: Brazil’s jailed former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the front-runner in the country’s election, will be struck from the ballot, an electoral court has ruled, reshaping Brazil’s election one month before voters cast their ballots.
The much-anticipated decision brings some clarity to a chaotic campaign season in which the man who had been favoured to win Latin America’s largest election was sitting behind bars.
Lula, who ruled Brazil between 2003 and 2011, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for money laundering and corruption in April. Yet, running a campaign largely from his jail cell, he has been able to capture nearly 40 per cent of prospective votes for October’s presidential elections, according to the latest polls.
The decision, while long expected, leaves tens of millions of voters without a candidate and adds uncertainty to the race.
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