President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) was chosen in a popular vote as the personality of the year 2021 “for better or worse” by the American magazine Time.
This is not the magazine’s traditional personality of the year election, but an earlier stage, where readers choose the most influential name. The honoree elected by the magazine’s editors will be announced on the next 13th, according to the publication. Last year, newly elected Democrats to the US Presidency and Vice President, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, were named Personalities of the Year by the magazine’s editors.
Even so, Bolsonaro celebrated the result, on a social network. “Thanks to the 2,160,000 voters who voted for me. We hope that Time Magazine will actually grant us the title respecting the election results,” said he, who also greeted second-placed former US President Donald Trump, his ally.
According to Time, “Of the more than 9 million votes cast by readers who they believe is the person or group that has had the most influence this year — for better or worse — Bolsonaro received 24% of the total.”
The publication noted that Bolsonaro is being investigated by the Supreme Court for comments made on Oct. 24 without being based on the reality that the Covid-19 vaccine may increase the chance of contracting the AIDS virus.
The magazine also highlighted that the president was the target of a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission in the Senate that accused him of a series of crimes in the fight against the pandemic, which has already killed more than 600 thousand people in Brazil.
Bolsonaro was elected in the popular vote of the magazine after a strong mobilization of supporters in social networks and messaging applications such as WhatsApp and Telegram, who asked the president for votes and highlighted the ease of registering the choice, since the Time system did not require registration for the vote.
In WhatsApp groups of pocket members accompanied by Folha, many admitted to having voted several times. “I voted about ten times,” said one, named Claudio.
The president himself even asked voters for votes in his video broadcasts displayed on social networks. “Now, in 2021, we’re leading. I appreciate whoever voted for me. Whoever didn’t, I ask you to go to Time’s website and vote,” he said.
Former US President Donald Trump came in second in the poll, with 9% of the vote — the magazine also highlighted that the Republican encouraged the invasion of the US Capitol and that he will try to run for president again in 2024.
After the results were announced, Bolsonaro
Following the names most remembered by Time readers are frontline health workers (6.3% of the vote), Russian opponent Alexei Navalni (6%) and scientists who helped develop Covid’s vaccines -19 (5.3%).
Last year, the same popular vote chose essential workers, including doctors, delivery workers and market workers, as the personalities of the year for having “risked their lives to serve the public during the height of the pandemic,” according to the magazine.
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