Police officers escort a suspect arrested during Operation Containment in the Vila Cruzeiro favela, in the Penha complex, in Rio de Janeiro, in 2025.
Photographer: Mauro Pimentel/AFP/Getty Images
Brazil's Lula Struggles to Convince Voters He's Tough on Crime
Public security is a top voter concern going into October’s election. That could spell trouble for the leftist leader.
When President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva oversaw Brazil’s biggest-ever organized crime sting in August, taking down a nearly $10 billion money-laundering scheme without firing a single bullet, the public seemed unimpressed.