FORMER Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva remained defiant yesterday as his party promised to “fight through all means necessary” after a court ruling banned him from standing in next month’s presidential election.

Lula warned: “They will not be able to imprison the will of the people” after judges in the Federal Supreme Court voted by six votes to one on Friday against allowing Lula to contest the Brazilian polls in October’s vote.

His legal team have promised to appeal and have 10 days to contest the decision which sees Lula ineligible to be a candidate due to his conviction and subsequent 12-year jail sentence on trumped-up corruption charges.

Despite this, Lula remained comfortably ahead in the polls which showed a third of Brazilians were set to vote for him. The ruling leaves the far-right candidate Jair Bolsanaro of the Social Liberty Party as the front runner.

The Workers’ Party (PT) vowed to “fight through all means necessary to secure his candidacy.”

“We will present all appeals before the courts for the recognition of the rights of Lula provided by law and international treaties ratified by Brazil.

“We will defend Lula in the streets, with the people,” the party said in a statement.

It is understood that former Sao Paolo mayor Fernando Haddad will be ratified as a replacement candidate in a PT meeting later today.

Mr Haddad is not as well known as the former president and stands at just 4 per cent in the polls.

However recent surveys suggest that around 31 per cent of Brazilians would vote for a candidate endorsed by Lula, who left office with an 87 per cent approval rating.