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Janja Lula da Silva | |
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| First Lady of Brazil | |
| Assumed role 1 January 2023 | |
| President | Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva |
| Preceded by | Michelle Bolsonaro |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Rosângela da Silva (1966-08-27)27 August 1966 (age 59) União da Vitória,Paraná, Brazil |
| Party | PT (1983–present) |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Residence | Palácio da Alvorada |
| Alma mater | Federal University of Paraná (BSS) |
Rosângela Lula da Silva (born 27 August 1966), commonly known by her nicknameJanja (Portuguese pronunciation:[ʒɐ̃ʒɐ]), is theFirst Lady of Brazil as the wife of presidentLuiz Inácio Lula da Silva.[1] Previously, she was an assistant to the Director-General and coordinator of sustainable development programs at hydroelectric damItaipu Binacional, and a communications and institutional affairs advisor at electric utilities companyEletrobras.
Rosângela was born inUnião da Vitória, in the state ofParaná. She is the daughter of José Clóvis da Silva (died 2024) and Vani Terezinha Ferreira (died in 2020 fromCOVID-19).[2] She moved toCuritiba during her childhood.[3] Silva joined theWorkers' Party at 17 years of age, in 1983.[4][5] In 1990, she enrolled for studies of Social Science at theFederal University of Paraná and specialized in History.
Janja began working at hydroelectric damItaipu Binacional on 1 January 2005 and was an assistant to the Director-General, as well as coordinator of sustainable development programs. Between 2012 and 2016, she was communications and institutional affairs advisor at electric utilities companyEletrobras, inRio de Janeiro. In 2016, she returned to Itaipu. She resigned from the company on 1 January 2020.[3]
Janja andLuiz Inácio Lula da Silva (no relation), 21 years her senior, began dating in 2017, the year his second wife,Marisa Letícia Lula da Silva, died from a stroke.[5][6] They remained together when Lula was arrested and incarcerated for corruption and money laundering at theFederal Police headquarters in Curitiba in April 2018.[5][7] Lula complained that they were not givenconjugal rights.[7]
When Lula was released, on 8 November 2019, he and Janja announced their engagement.[8] They married on 18 May 2022 inSão Paulo in aCatholic ceremony.[9][10]
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On 1 January 2023, she became the 38th First Lady of Brazil, in President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's third term. Janja established an office at thePalace of Planalto, the presidency's official headquarters inBrasilia.[citation needed]
Janja has regularly participated, alongside her husband, in meetings withheads of states and official events. She has also been a strong advocate of women's rights, and released an image of herself on social media with racial equality ministerAnielle Franco in solidarity with the latter after she was named as a victim of sexual misconduct by human rights ministerSilvio Almeida in September 2024.[11]
In December 2023, she said she would sue social media platform X, formerly known asTwitter, after her Twitter account was hacked.[12][13]Elon Musk, who owns Twitter, responded: "It is not clear how someone guessing her email password is our responsibility."[14]
On 16 November 2024, during a speech about fake news at the2024 G20 Rio de Janeiro summit, she swore atElon Musk, saying: "I'm not afraid of you. Fuck you, Elon Musk" (Eu não tenho medo de você. Inclusive, fuck you, Elon Musk, in Portuguese).[15][16] Hours later, he wrote onX : “They're going to lose the elections soon,” responding to a post with Janja's video.[17]
In May 2025, Brazilian media reported that Janja had an exchange withGeneral Secretary of the Chinese Communist PartyXi Jinping during a dinner with Lula in Beijing aboutTikTok allegedly favoring the political right in its algorithms. In June 2025, aDatafolha poll found that 36% of Brazilians thought that her actions hurt the government, while 14% say they are helpful.[18]
Brazil: Grand Cross of theOrder of Rio Branco (21 November 2023)Brazil Grand Cross of theOrder of Cultural Merit (May 20, 2025)Brazil Grand Cross of theEducational Merit (14 November 2025)
Portugal: Grand Cross of theOrder of Prince Henry (22 April 2023)
France: Officer of theLegion of Honour (28 March 2024)
Italy: Grand Cross of theOrder of Merit of the Italian Republic (10 July 2024)[19]| Honorary titles | ||
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| Preceded by | First Lady of Brazil 2023–present | Current holder |
