MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The presidents of Mexico and Brazil scored stunning election victories in 2018 in defiance of the political establishment, but their unwillingness to follow consensus on the coronavirus pandemic has left the two increasingly exposed.
Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro adjusts his protective face mask during a news conference to announce measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Brasilia, Brazil March 18, 2020. REUTERS/Adriano Machado
Mexican leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and his right-wing Brazilian counterpart Jair Bolsonaro have swum against the tide of scientific opinion, talking down the risks, delegating responsibility to others, and flouting advice to the public.
Opinion polls suggest their apparent nonchalance concerns voters, but that has not stopped them falling out of step with many other world leaders – including U.S. President Donald Trump, who has also been accused of underestimating the threat by his opponents.
Contrarian and prickly towards criticism, the two sexagenarians have shown they would rather govern for their core voters than from the center, said Sabino Bastidas, director of Pensar Diferente, a political consultancy in Mexico City.
“Both men have been in denial over the phenomenon. Both have hesitated to take decisions. Both have challenged the science,” he said.
Some global leaders cast the outbreak that has killed more than 17,000 people as the greatest challenge facing the planet since World War II. Some have even gone into quarantine.
Bolsonaro on March 10 in Miami labeled the pandemic a “fantasy” exaggerated by the mainstream media. His attitude sparked anger in Brazil, with housebound protesters banging pots and pans to shout