Rousseff v Silva: Brazil holds first televised presidential debate
World |
Presidential candidates faced off in the first televised debate for the October elections, after a poll showed soaring support for new candidate Marina Silva who now threatens to derail President Dilma Rousseff in an almost certain second round voting.
Brazil's leading presidential candidates went head-to-head Tuesday in the country's first televised debate ahead of October's general election.
Seven of the 11 presidential candidate took part in the event, including incumbent president and Workers' Party candidate, Dilma Rousseff, and her two main rivals, Marina Silva of the Brazilian Socialist Party, and Brazilian Social Democracy Party candidate Aécio Neves.
The rivals were asked to define their positions on crime, education, the economy, and political reform, as well as taking one another to task on other prickly issues such as the privatization of oil giant Petrobras, the legalization of abortion and crimes against the LGBT community.
The presidential hopefuls chose to aim many of their questions at Rousseff, who is vying for a second term in office and who spent much of her allotted time defending her record on social programs and job creation.
Neves condemned the president's economic track record of high inflation and sluggish economic growth. In return, Rousseff accused Neves' party of "breaking Brazil three times" when it was in power, with the incumbent taking one of the more memorable swipes of the night: "My government generated more jobs in four years than yours in eight."
Neves also attacked Rousseff's handling of Petrobras the recent subject of political scandal and parliamentary inquiries but the president rebuffed the accusation, highlighting the company's growth since the Social Democracy Party last held the reins.
- 'No silver bullet'
Rousseff and Neves briefly attacked newly-named candidate Marina Silva, who stepped up as the Socialist Party's presidential candidate after the death of Eduardo Campos in a plane crash Aug. 13.
However, the pair kept the majority of their questions for each other, in a bid to sideline Silva and maintain a traditional either-or, two-party race.
"Rousseff and Neves don't want to give Silva credit as a contender. Silva spent three hours criticizing the party polarization, but did not go into specifics about what she would do," Brazilian writer and journalist Mauricio Savarese told the Anadolu Agency (AA).
"The candidates simply tried to reinforce their positions."
Others opined, however, that Silva at least partly managed to embody Brazil's desire for change, which brought more than a million Brazilians out into the streets last year in mass anti-government protests demanding political reform and improved public services, among other grievances.
Silva strategically praised former presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Fernando Henrique Cardoso, from Rousseff and Neves's parties respectively, in an attempt to bridge the two-party divide. She also defended picking the best politics from both worlds.
In a predicted Silva-Rousseff election runoff, Silva would seek votes from Neves's supporters and the alienated Workers' Party.
Judging from the comments on social media where they were criticized for the dearth of clear proposals, none of the candidates stood out as having won the debate, but many singled out Silva as being particularly vague and lacking in detail.
"No one fired the silver bullet that would cause an opponent irreversible damage," political commentator Marcelo de Moraes wrote in the Estado de São Paulo newspaper, adding that Silva's tendency to accept criticism and praise others was likely attributable to her rising support among the electorate.
- Silva 'would win runoff'
The latest Ibope election poll, released hours before the debate, showed that support for Silva had skyrocketed and for the first time she was predicted to beat Rousseff in an almost-certain second round of voting.
Published by the Estado de São Paulo, it is the first poll to be taken since the start of political advertising on national television and radio, and the first since Silva was officially confirmed as a candidate.
It showed support for Rousseff had dropped four points to 34 percent, with Silva placing a close second at 29 percent. Neves also fell four points to 19 percent.
In a runoff between Rousseff and Silva, the poll predicted Silva would win 45 percent to 36 percent.
The result for Silva was even better than in the first poll released by Datafolha on Aug. 18, after Campos's death. It showed Silva with 21 percent of voter support, overtaking Neves to take second place and tying with Rousseff in a second-round scenario.
Campos had been polling third, with 9 percent in the last Ibope poll.
Some have attributed Silva's surge in popularity to emotions following Campos' death and a "novelty factor," but others argue her experience and low rejection rate mean she now stands a real chance of winning in what is now a much closer election.
The focus now shifts to Silva's primetime interview Wednesday on Jornal Nacional. The 15-minute grilling has proven a tough ride for other candidates, including Rousseff, whose complicated, numbers-heavy answers drew widespread criticism.
"Silva's performance on Jornal Nacional will be key for her to be seen as a credible candidate," Savarese told AA.
Voters head to the polls Oct. 5. Should no candidate reach 50 percent, which appears increasingly likely, a second round of voting will be held Oct. 26.
Seven of the 11 presidential candidate took part in the event, including incumbent president and Workers' Party candidate, Dilma Rousseff, and her two main rivals, Marina Silva of the Brazilian Socialist Party, and Brazilian Social Democracy Party candidate Aécio Neves.
The rivals were asked to define their positions on crime, education, the economy, and political reform, as well as taking one another to task on other prickly issues such as the privatization of oil giant Petrobras, the legalization of abortion and crimes against the LGBT community.
The presidential hopefuls chose to aim many of their questions at Rousseff, who is vying for a second term in office and who spent much of her allotted time defending her record on social programs and job creation.
Neves condemned the president's economic track record of high inflation and sluggish economic growth. In return, Rousseff accused Neves' party of "breaking Brazil three times" when it was in power, with the incumbent taking one of the more memorable swipes of the night: "My government generated more jobs in four years than yours in eight."
Neves also attacked Rousseff's handling of Petrobras the recent subject of political scandal and parliamentary inquiries but the president rebuffed the accusation, highlighting the company's growth since the Social Democracy Party last held the reins.
- 'No silver bullet'
Rousseff and Neves briefly attacked newly-named candidate Marina Silva, who stepped up as the Socialist Party's presidential candidate after the death of Eduardo Campos in a plane crash Aug. 13.
However, the pair kept the majority of their questions for each other, in a bid to sideline Silva and maintain a traditional either-or, two-party race.
"Rousseff and Neves don't want to give Silva credit as a contender. Silva spent three hours criticizing the party polarization, but did not go into specifics about what she would do," Brazilian writer and journalist Mauricio Savarese told the Anadolu Agency (AA).
"The candidates simply tried to reinforce their positions."
Others opined, however, that Silva at least partly managed to embody Brazil's desire for change, which brought more than a million Brazilians out into the streets last year in mass anti-government protests demanding political reform and improved public services, among other grievances.
Silva strategically praised former presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Fernando Henrique Cardoso, from Rousseff and Neves's parties respectively, in an attempt to bridge the two-party divide. She also defended picking the best politics from both worlds.
In a predicted Silva-Rousseff election runoff, Silva would seek votes from Neves's supporters and the alienated Workers' Party.
Judging from the comments on social media where they were criticized for the dearth of clear proposals, none of the candidates stood out as having won the debate, but many singled out Silva as being particularly vague and lacking in detail.
"No one fired the silver bullet that would cause an opponent irreversible damage," political commentator Marcelo de Moraes wrote in the Estado de São Paulo newspaper, adding that Silva's tendency to accept criticism and praise others was likely attributable to her rising support among the electorate.
- Silva 'would win runoff'
The latest Ibope election poll, released hours before the debate, showed that support for Silva had skyrocketed and for the first time she was predicted to beat Rousseff in an almost-certain second round of voting.
Published by the Estado de São Paulo, it is the first poll to be taken since the start of political advertising on national television and radio, and the first since Silva was officially confirmed as a candidate.
It showed support for Rousseff had dropped four points to 34 percent, with Silva placing a close second at 29 percent. Neves also fell four points to 19 percent.
In a runoff between Rousseff and Silva, the poll predicted Silva would win 45 percent to 36 percent.
The result for Silva was even better than in the first poll released by Datafolha on Aug. 18, after Campos's death. It showed Silva with 21 percent of voter support, overtaking Neves to take second place and tying with Rousseff in a second-round scenario.
Campos had been polling third, with 9 percent in the last Ibope poll.
Some have attributed Silva's surge in popularity to emotions following Campos' death and a "novelty factor," but others argue her experience and low rejection rate mean she now stands a real chance of winning in what is now a much closer election.
The focus now shifts to Silva's primetime interview Wednesday on Jornal Nacional. The 15-minute grilling has proven a tough ride for other candidates, including Rousseff, whose complicated, numbers-heavy answers drew widespread criticism.
"Silva's performance on Jornal Nacional will be key for her to be seen as a credible candidate," Savarese told AA.
Voters head to the polls Oct. 5. Should no candidate reach 50 percent, which appears increasingly likely, a second round of voting will be held Oct. 26.
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