Politics · Brazil · 3 hrs ago
Acemoglu calls Brazil’s 2026 election the most important outside the US
Economist Daron Acemoglu says Brazil’s 2026 presidential election is the most important outside the US.
He made the case in an interview with BBC News Brasil, saying Brazil has major influence in Latin America.
Acemoglu warned that a return to power by the Bolsonaro family could echo Donald Trump’s second term in the US.
He also argues that concentrated economic and political power, especially among technology companies, is moving societies away from liberalism.
His alternative is “working-class liberalism,” which aims to combine individual freedoms with shared prosperity and a public voice.
He says this requires public services and a sense that people can help govern their society.
Acemoglu points to the early years of PT-led governments under Lula in the 2000s as an example of policies that brought Brazil global attention through social programs and shared prosperity.
Daron Acemoglu says Brazil’s 2026 presidential election is the most important election outside the United States that year.
The MIT economist says Brazil is important to Latin America and compares a possible return to power by the Bolsonaro family with the United States choosing Donald Trump for a second term.
In an interview with BBC News Brasil, Acemoglu also argues for “working-class liberalism” as an alternative to the crisis facing democracies.
He says the approach should deliver shared prosperity, public services and a sense that people have a voice in self-government.
Acemoglu argues that technology companies’ control of information and economic power is moving society away from liberalism.
- Who
- Daron Acemoglu, an economist and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
- What
- He called Brazil’s 2026 presidential election the most important outside the United States that year.
- When
- The election is scheduled for 2026. The interview was published on October 20, 2026.
- Where
- Brazil.
- Why
- Acemoglu said Brazil is very important to Latin America and argued that a return to power by the Bolsonaro family would carry wider significance.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Acemoglu launched his book on liberal democracy in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Folha published its report on Acemoglu’s assessment of Brazil’s 2026 presidential election.
- Election year
- 2026
- Assessment
- Most important election outside the United States
- Economist
- Daron Acemoglu
- Institution
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Book
- What Happened to Liberal Democracy?: Remaking a Politics of Shared Prosperity
1 source
What people are saying
Brazil is very important to Latin America. In fact, if [the Bolsonaro family] returns to power, it will be like the US deciding on a second term for Donald Trump
We are not moving toward liberalism
deliver shared prosperity, with public services and a sense of self-government, of having a voice