Brazil Prepares for Presidential Vote - 副本.docxVIP

Widely viewed as an emerging world power, Brazil chooses a new leader October 3. If pre-election polls are accurate, outgoing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silvas hand-picked nominee is favored to succeed him and become Brazils first female leader.More and more, Brazil is flexing its bulging economic muscle. At a time of constrained global economic expansion, Brazils projected seven-percent growth rate this year is among the worlds highest. An exporting dynamo, Brazil boasts the worlds third-biggest airplane manufacturer and agricultural production that could one day rival that of the United States. It is also a world leader in bio-fuels and alternative energy.Basking in the glow of Brazils performance is President Lula da Silva of the center-left Workers Party, who has led the country for the last eight years.At a recent campaign rally, Mr. da Silva said that Brazil enjoys stable and accelerated economic growth, which will allow the society to flourish and guarantee a better country for its sons and daughters.The president prepares to leave office as one of Latin Americas most popular leaders, with domestic approval ratings consistently above 60 percent. His chosen successor, his chief of staff, economist Dilma Rousseff, has pledged to build upon Mr. da Silvas accomplishments.Rouseff says Brazil will be one of the worlds most dynamic countries in the next decade. She says foreign investors have a special environment in the country: a stable democracy with no ethnic conflicts, no wars.Rousseffs strongest opponent is Sao Paulo State Governor Jose Serra, who says Brazil can do even better than it has of late.Serra says there is still much to be done, and that if we compare the progress other countries have achieved with Brazils potential, there is one inescapable conclusion: Brazil can be even more than it is today.Serra belongs to the center-right Social Democracy Party of former President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, who preceded Mr. da Silva and is credited with many