Who Will Be The Next Elected President of Brazil?

Brazil has faced turmoil over the past year, being led by corrupt presidents. With a new crop of presidential candidates, things may be looking up for the once prosperous country. Here’s a look at the favorites to win the presidential election this fall.

Presidential Election Odds in Brazil

The search for Brazil’s next president has seen a few twists and turns leading up to a highly anticipated October election.

The once prosperous country has taken a turn for the worse the last year, still trying to recover from watching its last president get impeached for breaches of fiscal responsibility laws.

The country’s current leader — Michel Temer — hasn’t been an improvement.

Temer took over Brazil’s presidency reigns in August 2016 when his predecessor Dilma Rousseff was suspended while facing an impeachment hearing.

Who will be the next elected president of Brazil?

While Temer’s term will end January 2019, many people are hoping the current president is impeached or he voluntarily steps down. Temer — a centre-right leader — is facing corruption charges by the Attorney General’s office for his part in an alleged bribery scheme.

A new crop of candidates is vying to become Brazil’s next president. Let’s look at some of the frontrunners, with odds courtesy of Bovada.lv.

Carmen Lucia (+300)

A Brazilian jurist and member of the Supreme Federal Court since 2006, Carmen Lucia is the favorite to win the election this fall. Oddsmakers with Bovada.lv have pegged Lucia as a +300 favorite get elected and become the country’s second female president in October.

Lucia is well-regarded in the Supreme Federal Court circles, but many experts are second-guessing how’d she’d handle presidency.

“It would be a bad solution,” said political scientist Claudio Couto. “Not because of her, but because it would mix two branches of government, which is never good.”

Rodrigo Maia (+400)

The presidency may fall into the lap of Rodrigo, who could be next line to replace Temer if he’s impeached prior to the October election.

It’s a likely scenario, which is why Bovada has Maia — a House Speaker — as a +400 favorite to take over as Brazil’s presidency. If Temer is convicted by the top court, Maia could serve the remainder of his term — running through the end of 2018. Maia was a college dropout before starting to work in banks and eventually beginning his political career in 1997.

Lula (+600)

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s campaign trail hit a snag recently went a Brazilian judge ordered assets belonging to the country’s former leader be frozen following his conviction for corruption. Despite that, Bovada still has Lula as a +600 favorite to come out on top in the fall election. Lula denied the allegations but still had nearly $200,000 in assets frozen in the meantime. If found guilty, Lula would be stripped of his political protection and would go to jail to serve a nine-year sentence.

Henrique Meirelles (+600)

A well-respected minister of finances — Henrique may be exactly what Brazilians are looking forward. Known for being a strong numbers guy, Meirelles is a +600 favorite to win the presidents’ seat in this fall’s election. Meirelles could restore some order in what has been a corrupt office the past year as he’s also the former president of Central Bank of Brazil.