In Brazil, the timeline for benefit payments was changed before the decisive vote for 50 million people

The Brazilian government announced on Monday, October 19, a change in the schedule for social payments, allowing approximately 50 million participants in the Bolsa Família program to receive funds before the second round of the presidential elections. This was reported by the LETA agency, citing AFP. The Bolsa Família program was created in 2003 under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. It provides monthly financial support to low-income families, contingent on certain conditions, including those related to education and vaccination of children. ## Why the payments were expedited According to the original schedule, about half of the families were to receive the October benefits only after the second round of the presidential elections. However, the government has now ordered that funds be transferred to all program participants before the voting. The Minister of Development of Brazil explained the change in schedule as a necessity to reduce risks associated with the climatic phenomenon El Niño. The new payment order, he said, will be in effect until the end of the year. ## Lula is fighting for a fourth presidential term The decision comes amid an election campaign in which the incumbent president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is vying for a fourth term. His opponent in the second round is right-wing politician Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro. In the first round, which took place on October 4, Flávio Bolsonaro outpaced Lula by two percentage points. For the incumbent president, support from voters in the poorest regions of the country, including northeastern Brazil, where social assistance programs play a significant role, is particularly important. In the final stages of the campaign, Lula has put forward a number of social initiatives. In particular, he managed to gain parliamentary approval for a reduction in working hours—a measure that was also supported by his opponent Flávio Bolsonaro. ## Jair Bolsonaro also made a similar decision The acceleration of social payments before elections is not unprecedented in Brazil. In 2022, then-president Jair Bolsonaro took a similar step before the second round of the presidential elections, in which he subsequently lost to Lula. This time, the change in the payment schedule also coincided with the final stages of the presidential campaign, although the government officially explains it as a response to climate risks.