Special Report - Election Watch, 2010 (ISSN 17414474)

This year, 2010, is a busy year for elections in the region. Brazil's presidential and congressional elections dominate the calendar and the big question is whether President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva can transfer his popularity to his preferred successor, Dilma Rousseff. The example of what has happened in Chile shows how difficult this is. Chile elected Sebastián Piñera as its first democratically-chosen, rightwing president for 52 years in January. This was despite the 80% plus opinion poll approval ratings of the leftwing incumbent, Michelle Bachelet.