The previous governments during the period of redemocratization were left with the important task of promoting the social uses of rural land and urban property and it was assumed that Lula was the most qualified to meet this demand, given his proximity to the MST. However, the number of expropriations in his two terms was significantly lower than his predecessor, the Social Democrat Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Lula expropriated only 1,990 properties compared to the 3,532 under President Cardoso.
