Global Roaming with Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald

Lula wasn't supposed to win.
Just three weeks before Brazil's presidential runoff, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was trailing Flavio Bolsonaro by 2.2 million votes and staring down defeat. Then something extraordinary happened. Lula became the first candidate in Brazil's democratic history to lose the first round of a presidential election and still win the presidency.
How did he pull it off? And what does the comeback tell us about the future of populism, social media and democracy?
Brazilian-born Associate Professor Deborah Barros Leal Farias joins Laura Tingle and Latika Bourke to explain how a vast grassroots movement helped turn the race around, why an 11-million-person WhatsApp network became a decisive campaign tool, and how Lula's supporters learned to fight online political battles on terrain long dominated by the far right.
The conversation also looks at what comes next. Lula inherits a deeply polarised country, a powerful conservative movement, strong evangelical voting blocs and a Congress that may resist much of his agenda. Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, Meta and the Bolsonaro political machine all loom over the story.
Guest: Associate Professor Deborah Barros Leal Farias, UNSW School of Social SciencesGet in touch:
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The US has been hit by a blue wave, maybe even a tsunami. But what can the Democrats achieve with their control of the congress?
Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue speak with Dane Waters, a Republican political strategist who crossed the aisle to lead a SuperPAC campaign in support of the Democratic senate candidate for Texas, James Talarico. 
They discuss whether this result represents a massive repudiation of Donald Trump’s war in Iran, or if it simply exposes a Republican administration that has lost touch with the median voter.
Plus, with billionaires like Elon Musk spending hundreds of millions of dollars on failed Republican campaigns, are we seeing a limit of what money can buy in politics? Will we see a new type of political candidate fielded when the 2028 US election begins?
And what does this result mean for President Trump, who already seems to be getting his big red VETO stamp ready for action?
Guest: Dane Waters, Republican political strategist, treasurer and advisor to the ‘Moment of Truth’ PAC
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In February this year, the New START treaty governing nuclear weapon stockpiles in USA and Russia expired. Is there anything to replace it?
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jane Perlez, host of the podcast Face Off: Nuclear Anarchy, joins Hamish Macdonald and Waleed Aly to explain why experts are increasingly worried about a new era of nuclear competition.
They also discuss China's rapidly growing arsenal, Russia's increasing brinkmanship over nuclear weapons, and why Iran's calculations could change after years of confrontation.
Plus, can Trump continue the trend of US presidents negotiating increasingly smaller nuclear stockpiling with Russia? Does he even want to?
And with artificial intelligence beginning to reshape military decision-making, are the risks becoming even harder to manage?
If the old nuclear order is breaking down, who will build the next one?
Guest: Jane Perlez, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, host of Face Off: Nuclear Anarchy
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South Africa's politics are changing fast, and it may signal something much bigger.
The African National Congress, the party of Nelson Mandela and President Cyril Ramaphosa, is losing its grip on the country's biggest cities. In Johannesburg, years of failing services, power outages and frustration with government competence are reshaping how South Africans vote. For the first time, many voters are judging parties on delivery rather than liberation-era loyalties.
But that's only part of the story. The Economist's chief Africa correspondent John McDermott examines the new scramble for influence across Africa. China, Russia, the United States, Europe, India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates are all competing for resources, markets and political support. 
And then there's Aliko Dangote. Africa's richest businessman is betting billions on giant industrial projects that could reshape the continent's economic future. 
Is Africa becoming one of the century's most important geopolitical players? Or is the continent's future being shaped by two very different realities at once?
Geraldine Doogue and Latika Bourke speak with John McDermott about the elections, wars, power struggles and economic shifts transforming Africa.Guest: John McDermott, chief Africa correspondent for The EconomistGet in touch:
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Trump’s diesel deal with Russia, a Senate race turns ugly, and a midterm election that could reshape his presidency.
On the eve of the US midterm elections, Hamish Macdonald and Geraldine Doogue are joined by Jeremy Shapiro from the European Council on Foreign Relations to unpack a frantic fortnight in US politics. 
Trump’s diesel deal with Putin has drawn accusations that Washington is now aligned with Moscow’s interests in the Ukraine war, even as First Lady Melania Trump brokers a surprise humanitarian ceasefire in the besieged city of Oleshky.
Shapiro also addresses Trump’s attacks on Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who Trump has called a “jihadist” and Muslim Brotherhood member. There is no evidence for this claim.
Guest: Jeremy Shapiro, European Council on Foreign Relations
Recommendations: 
Geraldine – From airport queue to sudden diagnosis: Jennifer Hewett on facing brain cancer
Jeremy – A World For All: New Visions for US Foreign Policy, edited by Matthew Duss
Hamish – Empires of AI: The Rise and Fall of a New Global Order
Mentions: 
Obama has never mocked Trump so personally. That comes with a big risk by Bruce Wolpe
Get in touch:
We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au
Find all the episodes of Global Roaming now via the ABC Listen App or wherever you get your podcasts.