Brazil presidential election heads to runoff with Bolsonaro ahead of Lula
Brazilians voted Sunday in a high-stakes presidential election pitting incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva against Senator Flávio Bolsonaro amid a regional shift to the right. Bolsonaro is the son of jailed former president Jair Bolsonaro. A runoff will take place October 25 if no candidate wins an outright majority.
Brazil's presidential election will proceed to a runoff after the first round failed to produce a clear winner. According to reports, with around 65% of votes counted, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, was leading with 49.58% of the vote, while leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva trailed with 42.25%, per The Korea Times.
The BBC News reported that with over 90% of votes counted, Bolsonaro had 48.05% and Lula had 43.97%. As no candidate secured over 50% of the vote, a runoff election is set for October 25. Lula and Bolsonaro are expected to poll roughly evenly in the second round, according to Datafolha.
The election has been closely watched, with Lula warning that the choice was between "democracy and barbarism", while Bolsonaro sought to "free the Brazilian people". The outcome is seen as significant, with a regional shift to the right and concerns over corruption scandals, economic anxiety, and US meddling.
Brief written by urgent.news from NPR, France 24, The Korea Times, BBC News, Ajel English — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
