Brazil's rapid rise and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

When massive oil reserves were discovered off the coast near Rio de Janeiro, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva saw it as further proof of a celestial bond. "God," he gushed, "is Brazilian."

That kind of good fortune, divine or not, has helped Lula, 62, a former union leader, become the country's most popular President in half a century. Even without the oil find (which could make Brazil one of the world's largest crude producers) the economy is growing vigorously.

When he was first elected in 2002, many U.S. experts on Latin America worried that he would trash Brazil's economy by pursuing socialist and populist policies and by defaulting on the huge debts that Brazil had built up. But Lula stuck to the market-oriented fiscal reforms of his predecessor, Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Those policies, plus a windfall from high global prices for Brazilian products like soybeans and steel, helped Lula tame the country's notorious hyperinflation and create a boom.

With an approval rating of 70% his impact has been widespread. Brazilians are now split on proposed constitutional changes that would allow Lula to run for a third consecutive term in the presidential election due in October 2010. About 49 percent said the law should not be changed, down sharply from 65 percent in a November 2007 poll. But 47 percent wanted the change to allow Lula to run again, up from 31 percent in November 2007. Lula has repeatedly said he has no intentions of seeking a third term but a lawmaker in the governing coalition has put forward a proposal for a referendum in September to amend the constitution.