Brazilians Vote for President as Flávio Bolsonaro Takes On Lula in a Bruising, Polarized Race
Brazilians vote for president on Sunday in one of the most polarized elections the country has seen in years, with left-wing incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva facing a first-time presidential run by right-wing Senator Flávio Bolsonaro.
About 159 million people are eligible to cast ballots, and voting is compulsory. Preliminary results are expected shortly after polling stations close.
Neither front-runner is expected to clear the absolute majority required to win in the first round, which would push the contest to a run-off on October 25 — a scenario that would force both camps to court the candidates and voters left behind by the ten other contenders on the ballot.
The campaign has turned on a handful of familiar dividing lines: public security, the size and reach of the state, the independence of the Supreme Court, and the country's relationship with the United States.
Flávio Bolsonaro, of the Liberal Party (PL), has campaigned on shrinking state services and taking a harder line on crime. Lula, of the Workers' Party (PT), is running on the continuation of his government's social programmes and public investment, with the state keeping a central role in the economy.
Lula, who returned to the presidency in 2023, is seeking a fourth term after previously governing from 2003 to 2010. Flávio Bolsonaro has been a senator since 2019 and is running for the country's top office for the first time.
He is carrying the political brand of his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, who lost the 2022 election to Lula by a narrow margin and was later sentenced by the Supreme Court to more than 27 years in prison for an attempted coup after that defeat. The elder Bolsonaro is serving his sentence under house arrest because of health problems, leaving his son to inherit both his base and his legal baggage.
Twelve candidates are in the race. Alongside Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro are governors Ronaldo Caiado and Romeu Zema, as well as psychiatrist and author Augusto Cury. The rest of the field is polling well behind the two front-runners.
Brazilians are also choosing two-thirds of the 81-seat Senate and all 513 members of the Chamber of Deputies, along with governors in the country's 26 states and the Federal District and members of state legislatures.
The outcome will be watched closely well beyond Brazil. Whoever takes office will inherit decisions on trade, the Amazon and relations with Washington, and will govern alongside a Congress likely to remain fragmented — meaning the next president may need the same kind of coalition-building that has defined Brazilian politics for a generation.