Bolsonaro denies the accusations – which the attorney general is currently weighing to decide if formal charges will be laid – and has vowed to have the ban set aside so he can run again.
“I am Plan A, Plan B and also Plan C” for 2026, he told a radio program last week.
“Bolsonaro seeks inspiration from Trump … but has before him a long battle in the courts,” said Roberto Goulart, an international relations professor at Brasilia University.
Brazil’s political and justice system has thrown up surprises before.
Lula himself was barred from running for president in 2018, when he was convicted of corruption, propelling his running mate, former Sao Paulo mayor and current economy minister Fernando Haddad, to the top of the ticket.
Haddad lost to Bolsonaro. And Lula’s conviction was later overturned when the judge in charge of the case against him was found to be biased.
