Lula’s Back in Charge in Brazil to Save Rousseff and Himself

President Dilma Rousseff of Brazil was so close with her chief of staff that aides said if she ever fired him it would be like firing herself.

Last week, that’s what she did. The removal of Aloizio Mercadante and other top ministers showed not only political desperation amid fears of her impeachment but also the surprise return of Rousseff’s predecessor and mentor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. By replacing Mercadante with a key Lula confidant, Rousseff is allowing Brazil’s most dominant politician of the past half century to again become a central presence in the presidential palace. He is being eyed as a candidate for 2018.

“Dilma’s main goal is to protect her term, so she’s doing this not because she would like to, but because she needs to,” said Cristiano Noronha, vice president of Arko Advice, a political consulting firm.

Only a few months ago, Lula was actively distancing himself from Rousseff, telling religious leaders behind closed doors that he was disappointed in her and where she had taken their Workers’ Party. Famous for reaching out to ordinary people and embracing them, Lula lamented that Rousseff had failed to do so.

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