Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) – The parade of samba schools in Rio de Janeiro begins on Sunday, February 15 and one of the themes is President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The controversy? A tribute to the head of state in an election year, in which he, 80 years old, is seeking another mandate. The narrative: "From the top of the mulungu, hope is born: Lula, the worker of Brazil." The opposition denounces proselytism with public money.

First modification: 02/14/2026 - 04:33 Last modification: 02/14/2026 - 16:42

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"Your legacy is a reflection of my lessons, without fear of tariffs or sanctions. This is how sovereignty is established, without false myths, without amnesty. How much does hunger cost? How much does life matter? Our last name is Brasil da Silva."

These are some verses of the song that the Acadêmicos de Niterói samba school will bring to the Sambódromo on February 15 to honor the history of the president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. This is just eight months before the presidential elections in October, in which Lula, 80, intends to run to try to win his fourth term.

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The parade will review the childhood of the founder of the Workers' Party in Pernambuco, his life as a worker and trade unionist, his entry into politics and his arrival to the Presidency, in a very flattering whole.

It is important to highlight one detail: it is the first time in the history of Brazil that a president is honored at the Sambódromo while he is alive and still in office. The last case dates back to 1956 with the president and dictator Getúlio Vargas, who was immortalized by the Mangueira (“O Grande Presidente”) school. But, at that time, Vargas had been dead for two years.

In 1981, another Brazilian president, Juscelino Kubitschek, had a prominent place on the samba avenue, again thanks to the Mangueira school. But JK, as he was known, had died in 1976. In addition, some leaders such as Jair Bolsonaro, Michel Temer, Dilma Rousseff or Fernando Collor de Mello received mentions in the Sambódromo parades, but they never had the same prominence as Lula.

Many Lula followers thought it was a brilliant idea. Even part of the samba world supports the choice of this theme.

"The saga of Lula - the first Brazilian president of working-class origins, who lifted more than 40 million Brazilians out of poverty - is undoubtedly a gigantic carnival theme. Historically, samba schools have become famous for telling the stories of great figures who transformed Brazil, whether in music, literature, sports and, of course, politics. Lula is one of those Brazilians who redefined the very construction of the country's meaning, the ability to dream and the very scope of the achievements of the people. He was born poor, he triumphed in life and through the vote. He is a democrat who perfectly embodies the fundamental knowledge of a festival that originated in the people, among the most humble," Fábio Fabato, journalist, writer and researcher of the carnival, told France 24.

"The theme of carnival is a way that Brazilians have found to tell their stories through multiple arts: singing, dance, painting, sculpture. Each samba school has an average of 4,000 people, who put themselves at the service of a language in which bodies transmit messages linked to Brazilian memory. Celebrating the great women and men in carnival is, therefore, inherent to the narrative and reflective nature of the party. It is joy with seriousness, celebration with analysis and the construction and consolidation of social and cultural values,” adds Fabato, who is co-author of the book “So that everything begins on Thursday.”

A tribute in election year

But, in an election year, the election of the Niterói samba school has created a lot of suspicion among the ranks of the opposition and has generated strong controversy, even because the parade will be broadcast in its entirety on TV Globo (like all parades), which will give Lula a lot of visibility among his potential voters.

The main complaint came from Senator Damares Alves, who was Minister of Women, Family and Human Rights during the Government of the far-right and now convicted of attempted coup d'état, Jair Bolsonaro. Along with other opposition congressmen, he filed a complaint with the Public Electoral Ministry and the State Attorney General's Office questioning the use of federal funds for political purposes.

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Parliamentarians consider that honoring Lula in an election year is equivalent to a premature campaign to benefit the current president of the Republic. This is because each samba school in Rio de Janeiro annually receives one million reais (about $191,000) from the Brazilian International Tourism Promotion Agency (Embratur). Additionally, Damares argued that the parade could serve as a platform for criticism of the right-wing former president.

At the beginning of February, the Union Court of Accounts requested the partial suspension of public funds allocated to the Niterói Academic samba school. The control body understands that there may be “misuse” of public funds. “Improper use of public funds, in violation of the principles of inalienability of public interest, impartiality and morality, can lead to the total or partial annulment of the contract, the obligation to reimburse the public treasury, among other consequences,” can be read in an excerpt of the analysis carried out by auditor Gregório Silveira de Faria.

"Carnival is one of Brazil's largest cultural and tourism showcases to the world, with global broadcasts to millions of viewers in more than 160 countries. It is a cultural expression that strengthens Brazil's image as a creative, diverse, inclusive and vibrant destination, boosting tourism during and after the festivities. Projections indicate a 26% increase in the arrival of foreign tourists to Brazil for this year's Carnival. In Rio de Janeiro alone, the Carnival is expected to generate more than 5.7 billion reais (1.09 billion dollars),” says Embratur in an official statement.

The president of this federal body, Marcelo Freixo, emphasized that Embratur's function is to promote tourism, without interfering in the artistic selection of events. "The school is a private entity and decides who to honor. What we have to do is sponsor the carnival," he stated while highlighting that the 12 million reais (2.3 million dollars) invested in this show are distributed equally among the 12 samba schools of the special group of Rio de Janeiro.

Anderson Pipico, who is honorary president of the Niterói Academics samba school and also a councilor for Lula's Workers' Party (PT), told the Brazilian press that the Court of Auditors' request constitutes "censorship" and that Brazil "is not yet in the electoral period." "Freedom of expression must be defended as a priority value in our society and is part of our democracy. Therefore, any action in this sense, in my opinion, constitutes a restriction on the school," he added.

Finally, on February 12, the Superior Electoral Court unanimously refused to ban the controversial parade, just three days before its celebration. The rapporteur of the case, Estela Aranha, appointed by Lula himself, dismissed the actions presented by some congressmen. Their main argument was that restricting artistic and cultural events in advance “because there is news of political demonstrations” would constitute “prior and indirect censorship and a disproportionate restriction of democratic debate.”

The judge also stated that it is not possible to recognize an early electoral campaign in an event that has not yet occurred, but that any possible electoral crime can be investigated later. For her part, Judge Cármen Lúcia, who is also a member of the Supreme Court, pointed out that the celebration of the carnival cannot be a “window” for electoral crimes and that there is a “very specific, plausible risk that some illegality may occur” in this case, which would be analyzed by the Electoral Justice, if it occurs.

The underlying issue is that the Brazilian Electoral Court recently disqualified Bolsonaro for using the commemoration of the 200th anniversary of Brazil's independence for electoral purposes, in 2022.

For some jurists, some fragments of the song, although they do not constitute anticipatory propaganda, would be on the limit of legality and could characterize abuse of power. The ultimate risk that Lula runs is being declared ineligible or losing his mandate.

To avoid any problem, Lula's Government has asked all ministers not to participate in the Sambodromo parade, although the president's wife, Janja Lula, is scheduled to do so. One of the main dangers that some jurists point out is that during the parade someone asks to vote for Lula, which is prohibited in an election year. Lula himself was invited by the samba school to parade. For now, everything indicates that he will be limited to attending from the box of the Rio de Janeiro City Council.

Niterói Academics, which last year was the champion in series B and promoted to Olimpo from series A, runs the risk of being relegated this year. That is not due to his decision to tell the story of President Lula. Rather, it is the curse of the less consolidated schools, which have difficulty staying in the top division.

By the way, Lula already had another themed parade in 2012, carried out thanks to the Lula Gaviões da Fiel school in S. Paulo. However, that year the president was his ally Dilma Rousseff. On that occasion, the percussionists began playing dressed as construction workers and transformed into presidents towards the end of the parade, wearing suits, ties, and presidential sashes. The presentation defined the president's life as the “saga of a dreaming child.”

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