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18 October 2010

The rise of Dilma Rousseff

The support of the outgoing Brazilian president, Lula, for his former chief of staff transformed her

By Annabel Symington

A groan rippled through a bus station in Rio de Janeiro. It was 11pm and the results of the day’s election were dribbling in. Tiririca, a blond clown and D-list television personality, had just been elected as the federal deputy for São Paulo. His campaign message? “What does a congressman do? I don’t know. But vote for me and I will find out.”

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