SAO PAULO, Oct. 31 (UPI) -- Former presidential hopeful Jose Serra Sunday easily beat incumbent Sao Paulo Mayor Marta Suplicy, dealing Brazil's ruling Workers' Party a major blow.
According to the Superior Electoral Court -- after tallying 80 percent of the votes -- Serra defeated the PT by 58 percent to 42 percent.
The win for Serra, the former health minister, gives his center-right Social Democratic Party, or PSDB -- the country's largest opposition party -- a real boost, while serving a definitive blow to the leftist PT.
Losing control of Brazil's largest city and economic capital will surely hamper the reelection chances for President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in the 2006 presidential races. Serra lost to Lula in the 2002 presidential election.
Brazil's local politicians often act as vote brokers in the national races.
In the first round of voting earlier this month the PT won numerous cities' mayoral races outright, more than doubling their mayor count nationwide, but none are as important to Lula as Sao Paulo.
Meanwhile, the PT mayor in the important southern city of Porto Alegre also lost Sunday, marking the first time the Workers' Party hasn't held that office in 16 years.
