Dilma Rousseff, Brazilian President Lula de Silva’s chief of staff, was nominated today to represent the Worker’s Party in the upcoming presidential election. She is known as the “iron lady.” Lula is term-limited.
Rousseff’s candidacy continues the rise of women in Latin American politics. If elected, Latin America will have more female heads of government than Europe. Her victory would be significant both in quantity and quality. Brazil has the largest economy in the region.
However, despite Lula’s popularity, Rousseff’s victory is far from certain. She trails conservative governor Jose Serra by over 5 points, though she has gained ground since November. We’ll be following the campaign here on UN Dispatch.