Politics transformed - Lula and the Workers' Party in Brazil

Sue Branford and Bernardo Kucinski, Latin America Bureau, 136 pages, paperback, £6.99

The election of Lula da Silva as president of Brazil is an event of global significance, and this book provides the background to this historic victory.

Lula leads the Workers' Party (PT), which was founded in 1980 to represent the working class in politics. It was formed after a wave of metalworkers' strikes, which shook the military dictatorship and paved the way for democratic rule. The party also initiated the main trade union federation, the CUT.

The PT has moved some way from its origins, having run some municipal and local governments, and reneged on some of its promises.

Whether Lula will succeed in breaking from neo-liberalism and carrying through a programme of radical change remains to be seen. This book is optimistic that he will make a difference.