The LatinNews Podcast is a fortnightly deep dive into key developments from across Latin America and the Caribbean.
Real insights from the region’s sharpest minds.
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Season 1 | Episode 85
Brazil heads to the polls on 4 October in a presidential election shaped by deep political polarization, economic concerns and growing controversy surrounding the country’s Supreme Court.
In this episode of The LatinNews Podcast, Richard McColl speaks with James N. Green, Professor Emeritus of Brazilian History and Culture at Brown University and President of the Board of Directors of the Washington Brazil Office, about the contest between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro.
They discuss the divisions shaping the election, the Banco Master scandal and its implications for the Supreme Court, voter concerns over the economy and cost of living, and the increasingly complicated relationship between Brazil and the United States.
With the race highly competitive, the episode also considers what could determine the outcome if the election proceeds to a second round.
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In this episode we discuss:
• The political divide between Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro and what could shape a second round
• The Banco Master scandal and growing controversy surrounding Brazil's Supreme Court
• Brazil-US relations and the impact of international pressure on the campaign
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James N. Green
James N. Green is Professor Emeritus of Modern Latin American History and Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at Brown University, where his work has focused extensively on Brazilian history, politics, democracy and human rights. He is the author or co-editor of eleven books on Brazil and Latin America and previously directed both Brown’s Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and its Brazil Initiative.Green is a former President and Executive Director of the Brazilian Studies Association (BRASA), Director of the Opening the Archives Project and President of the Board of Directors of the Washington Brazil Office. He has lived in Brazil for more than a decade and has worked on the country for over 50 years. In 2025, he was awarded Brazil’s Order of Rio Branco for distinguished service to the country.
The LatinNews Podcast is hosted by Richard McColl, a foreign correspondent in Colombia. Having first travelled to Colombia in the late 90s, McColl made the move to Bogotá in 2007. He holds a Diploma in Conflict resolution and a PhD in Social and Human Sciences both at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá. He has worked as a journalist across Latin America.
Political Analyst, Richard McColl