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Jailed Lula pulls out of Brazil presidential race

Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attends a rally in Sao Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil on March 23 last — Reuters/File
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva attends a rally in Sao Leopoldo, Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil on March 23 last — Reuters/File

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Jailed former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has pulled out of next month's presidential election, allowing his running mate Fernando Haddad to stand in his place.

Workers Party president Senator Gleisi Hoffmann on Tuesday announced the decision to Lula’s supporters outside the federal police headquarters in Curitiba where he has been jailed since April, serving a 12-year sentence for corruption, reports Reuters.

Haddad, a former Sao Paulo mayor, has surged in polls and is tied in third place for the October 7 vote, according to a Datafolha survey published on Monday that has spooked markets.

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