By far, Lula has the best credentials: track record, lucidity, resilience, international projection. But these seem not to be enough. Elections are not reduced to confrontations between biographies. They are decided by emotions, perceptions, and also by accumulated anger and frustrations. The results of October 5 are not so surprising. Bolsonaro's rise could be seen coming. Insecurity in the face of organized crime is an unbeatable electoral horse in these times. Aware that fear mobilizes more than hope, the far right has built a script that has so far been impossible to counter. They have been applying it with great success in countries like El Salvador, Ecuador, Chile, Colombia, and Peru. In theory, not everything is decided. Bolsonaro beat Lula by just over 2 million votes. With great composure, encouraging his supporters once the results were known, Lula defined the second round as a new election. There are 33 million abstainers and more than 5 million voted null or blank. The challenge is to move a significant part of that electorate so they come out to vote. Bolsonaro has the momentum in his favor. He has a powerful cast of new governors, deputies, and senators. Lula does not lack arguments. He can showcase important achievements: the expansion of Bolsa Família, the Brazil Without Hunger Plan, low unemployment, the revaluation of the minimum wage, the "My House, My Life" program, the safeguarding of sovereignty, Brazil's international recognition. Lula's great adversary is the discourse of change. Elections are not won by putting forward the record of a past administration. Elections are always disputes about the future. Many Brazilians value Bolsa Família and the other social programs, but they still voted for Bolsonaro. Regardless of the results of the second round, the progressive field is obliged to draw many lessons from the Brazilian experience. Weakness in confronting crime is not forgiven. The recipe is not an iron fist, but rather a strong and just hand. Security is much more than a sectoral policy; it must be an organic component of the very conception of a Social Rule of Law. Social programs must be inserted into a broader narrative, into a project of society that opens new horizons especially for millions of young people who, in despair, end up clinging to evangelical churches and voting for the ultra-right. Likewise, it is urgent to assume that the new battles are not fought mainly in assemblies and other classic spaces, but in the digital territory. And also to think about the renewal of leadership. Lula is a tremendous leader, by far the Latin American politician with the greatest prestige and international resonance, and to whom Brazil owes a great deal. He is the Latin American Mandela, but the weight of a political project that must compete before 160 million voters cannot be placed on his shoulders over and over again. If he manages to reverse the result of the first round, his trajectory will acquire a new dimension, transforming into an entirely exceptional and unrepeatable legend. By Carlos Ominami, president of Chile 21 and of the Permanent Forum on Foreign PolicyNEWSLETTEROpinionSaturday, AMIdeas in tension, opposing views, and clear analysis: elements to reveal the issues that divide opinions and will set the agenda. By subscribing you are accepting the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policies of La Tercera.