Milei Accuses Lula of Machismo on 20 October
BRAZIL · ELECTION CAMPAIGN
Key Facts
- —The country Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, votes in a presidential runoff on Sunday 25 October 2026 between President Lula and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro.
- —Why it matters A sitting foreign president is weighing in on a close race that US investors follow, and Argentina and Brazil are the two biggest members of the Mercosur trade bloc.
- —Why now Milei posted on Tuesday 20 October, five days before the vote and a day after Lula’s television interview on the end of the 6×1 work schedule.
- —What happened Milei accused Lula of machismo, called him a “leftist thief” and hoped the campaign would not “steal the election”; he offered no evidence of any such plan.
- —What it means for you The post changes no Brazilian rule, tariff or contract, but it adds friction between Buenos Aires and Brasília while US investors watch the runoff.
- —Still open Whether Lula, his campaign or the Brazilian foreign ministry answers before Sunday, and whether the clipped remark moves any votes.
- —Prediction markets Polymarket gives Flávio Bolsonaro a 77% chance of winning the 25 October runoff and Lula 22.5% (20 October, 1:45 p.m. ET). Polymarket puts Flávio Bolsonaro’s chance of winning at 78% and Kalshi at 79% (Lula: 22% and 21%), as of 20 October, 4:20 pm ET; prices are bets, not polls.
- —Power Index Brazil ranks 1st of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 75.0 points (October 2026 edition).
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Argentine President Javier Milei accuses Lula of machismo in a post on X on Tuesday 20 October 2026, five days before the Brazil election 2026 runoff. Milei, who openly backs conservative candidate Flávio Bolsonaro, also wrote that he hoped Lula’s “last dirty campaign trick” would not include stealing the election.
For US readers the dispute matters because the vote on Sunday 25 October decides who runs Latin America’s largest economy, and a foreign head of state has now joined the argument. Our Brazil election polls tracker lists the surveys, the Brazil election odds page shows live betting prices and the Brazil runoff date page sets out the schedule.
Milei’s post followed a remark Lula made on Monday 19 October in an interview with SBT News, a Brazilian television network. Lula, of the left-wing Workers’ Party (PT), seeks re-election, while Flávio, a senator for Rio de Janeiro, runs for the conservative Liberal Party (PL).
What Milei Wrote on X
In Spanish, Milei wrote that “progressive machos” later accuse all their opponents of misogyny and that “the mask is falling off these criminals”. He closed by hoping that Lula’s last dirty campaign trick would not include stealing the election, and added the words “leftist thief”.
Gazeta do Povo of Curitiba and La Nación of Buenos Aires both quote the post, which Milei shared on Tuesday 20 October. Los Andes of Mendoza prints the same wording, so the quotes match across three outlets.
Why Milei Accuses Lula of Machismo
On Monday 19 October Lula told SBT News that the day a woman stays at home is the day she works most, because she has to clean the house for the whole week. Brasil de Fato and Gazeta do Povo quote the sentence in the same words, and he said it while defending the end of the 6×1 work schedule.
Brasil de Fato adds that Lula argued the old schedule weighs especially on women. La Nación and Los Andes say Milei shared a clipped version of the interview, and La Nación says Lula meant to show that women mostly carry the housework.
The Argentine site Urgente24 calls Milei’s attack a misreading of Lula’s point, which is an opinion and not a finding. Whether the remark was well put is a matter of judgment, and we found no reply from Lula’s campaign.
Brazil’s New Work Week Behind the Remark
The 6×1 schedule meant six working days and one rest day, and a constitutional amendment, PEC 221/19, now ends it. The Senate passed it on Wednesday 14 October by 75 votes to 1, as in Brazil Senate Passes 5-Day Week, 75 to 1, and Congress promulgated it on Friday 16 October with Lula present.
Two months after promulgation the weekly limit falls from 44 to 42 hours with two rest days, and twelve months after that it falls to 40 hours, without pay cuts, Painel Político reports. A constitutional amendment does not go to the president for signature, and Lula told SBT the change was “a conquest of the Brazilian people” and not his own.
A Campaign Already Strained by Milei
At a Liberal Party event in São Paulo in late July, Milei called Lula a thief, corrupt and a convict, g1 wrote at the time. Brazil’s foreign ministry downgraded relations on Tuesday 4 August, and its ambassador in Buenos Aires, Julio Bitelli, has not returned.
Last week in Washington Milei met Eduardo Bolsonaro, a former Brazilian congressman, and called Lula a “communist dictator”, as in Milei Calls Lula a Dictator in Washington. On Monday 19 October he called Lula “authoritarian” over a remark at the Band debate about Flávio losing his immunity if he loses, Gazeta do Povo writes.
Lula’s side has also used Argentina, with a campaign post on Friday 16 October saying Milei’s “chainsaw” had pushed almost half of Argentines into misery. We have not verified that claim, and La Nación describes the post as an attempt to discourage votes for Flávio.
The Fraud Insinuation
Even as Milei accuses Lula of machismo, he offered no evidence of any plan to steal the vote, and none of the outlets we read reports one. La Nación and Los Andes both note that the wording echoes the claims Jair Bolsonaro made after losing to Lula in 2022.
Jair Bolsonaro, Flávio’s father and a former president, serves a sentence of 27 years and 3 months for plotting a coup after that defeat, the same two outlets report. Flávio finished first in the first round on Sunday 4 October with 47.03% of valid votes against 45.16% for Lula, according to the official count reported by CartaCapital.
What It Means for You
Milei holds no vote in Brazil, so the post changes no Brazilian rule, tariff or contract. It does add to the tension between the two biggest members of the Mercosur trade bloc in the last week of a close race.
Our guides Who Dominates Brazil, Elites and Regions Explained and Brazil Geopolitics Explained 2026 give the background. Visitors and residents can read our São Paulo expat city guide for practical advice around election day.
What Is Not Known
Milei’s original post could not be opened for this article, so its wording rests on La Nación, Gazeta do Povo and Los Andes, which agree. We did not find the full SBT News interview, but Brasil de Fato and Gazeta do Povo quote Lula’s sentence identically.
No reply from Lula, his campaign or the Brazilian foreign ministry to Tuesday’s post appeared in the coverage we reviewed. It is also not known whether Brazil will take any new diplomatic step before Sunday’s vote.
The sources do not show whether the post will move any Brazilian votes, and no comment from Flávio Bolsonaro appeared in the coverage reviewed. SBT has replaced its planned debate with one-on-one interviews and invited Flávio for Wednesday 21 October, Brasil de Fato says, but his attendance was unconfirmed.
What Prediction Markets Say
On Polymarket, an online prediction market, bettors give Flávio Bolsonaro a 77% chance of winning the 25 October runoff and Lula 22.5% (20 October, 1:45 p.m. ET). The Brazil Presidential Election event has drawn about US$189 million in bets, with about US$23.4 million on the Flávio contract and US$27.1 million on the Lula contract.
These prices are bets, not polls, and we draw no link between them and Milei’s post. Live prices are on our odds page.
Prediction markets · who wins the runoff
Implied chance of winning Brazil’s presidency on 25 October, from traders’ prices.
Polymarket
Flávio Bolsonaro 78% · Lula 21.5% (US$189 million traded)
Kalshi (regulated in the US by the CFTC)
Flávio Bolsonaro 79% · Lula 21%
As of 20 October, 4:20 pm ET (21:20 Lisbon), updated every 20 minutes. Prices are bets, not polls, and can move fast.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Milei say about Lula?
He wrote on X on Tuesday 20 October that “progressive machos” accuse their opponents of misogyny and called Lula a “leftist thief”. He also hoped Lula’s last dirty campaign trick would not include stealing the election.
What did Lula actually say?
In an SBT News interview on Monday 19 October, Lula said the day a woman stays at home is the day she works most, because she has to clean the house for the week. He was defending the end of the 6×1 work schedule.
Is there evidence of fraud in the Brazil runoff?
Milei offered none, and the coverage we reviewed reports none. The electoral court, the TSE, announces the official result after the count.
When is the Brazil runoff?
Brazil votes on Sunday 25 October 2026 in the runoff between Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro. The first round was held on Sunday 4 October.
What does it mean for US readers?
It shows a foreign leader entering a close Brazilian campaign five days before the vote, which adds friction but changes no Brazilian rule. Investors can follow our polls and odds pages for the race itself.
Sources: CartaCapital, 5 October 2026; Gazeta do Povo, 20 October 2026; La Nación, 20 October 2026; Los Andes, 20 October 2026; Brasil de Fato, 19 October 2026; Urgente24, 20 October 2026; Painel Político, 16 October 2026; Extra, 16 October 2026; g1, 4 August 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief