(REUTERS)
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Brazil’s hard-line leader Jair Bolsonaro and his leftist challenger Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva are near bullish in the polls as the country goes to the polls in today’s presidential election after a bitter campaign. Surveys by pollsters Datafolha and Quaest both gave Lula 52 percent of the vote to Mr. Bolsonaro’s 48 percent, down from a 6-point lead three days ago. Most polls still show Lula as the slight favorite to return for a third term, capping a remarkable political comeback after his prison term on overturned bribery convictions. But Mr Bolsonaro topped the polls in the first round of voting on October 2 and many analysts say the election could go either way. Polls will open at 8am local time and close at 5pm. More than 120 million Brazilians are expected to vote, but because voting is conducted electronically, the final result is usually available within hours of polls closing in the late afternoon. Show latest update 1667131987
Bolsonaro casts his vote
Bolsonaro was first in line to vote at a military compound in Rio de Janeiro. He wore the green and yellow colors of the Brazilian flag that are always seen in his rallies. “I expect our victory, for the sake of Brazil,” he told reporters afterwards. “God willing, Brazil will be victorious today.” (REUTERS) (Getty Images) (Getty Images) Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 12:13 1667128391
Voters line up to cast their ballots on Sunday
Brazilians went to the polls this morning in a polarizing second round of the presidential election. It’s just after 8am in the country, and members of the public have been seen queuing to have their say. It is expected to be a close contest between President Jair Bolsonaro and his political nemesis, former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. (REUTERS) (REUTERS) Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 11:13 1667125249
Bolsonaro claimed that electronic voting machines are prone to fraud
The president’s digital mobilization has surfaced in recent days as his campaign has introduced new — and unproven — allegations of possible voter manipulation. That has revived fears that Bolsonaro could challenge the election results if he loses – just like Donald Trump, whom he admires. For months, he has claimed the nation’s electronic voting machines are prone to fraud, though he has never produced evidence, even after the election authority set a deadline for him to do so. More recently, allegations have focused on airtime for political ads. Bolsonaro’s campaign claimed that radio stations failed to broadcast more than 150,000 election spots and suggested that this may have resulted from a deliberate malicious attempt to damage his candidacy. The electoral authority refused to launch an investigation, citing a lack of evidence. “We don’t know if this result will be contested or not, and to what extent,” said Carlos Melo, a professor of political science at Insper University in Sao Paulo. “It’s a very difficult second round and a very tense Sunday and the tensions may continue beyond today.” Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 10:20 1667123449
Da Silva was jailed – and the convictions were subsequently overturned
An extensive investigation revealed the involvement of Silva’s Labor Party in massive corruption scandals that ensnared top politicians and officials. Da Silva himself was jailed for 19 months for corruption and money laundering. The Supreme Court overturned his convictions in 2019, on the grounds that the judge was biased and colluded with prosecutors. That hasn’t stopped Bolsonaro from reminding voters of the convictions. The possible election of Da Silva would be like letting a thief return to the scene of the crime, the president warned. (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 09:50 1667121649
Candidates battled online smear campaigns
The candidates presented few proposals for the future of the country beyond the assurance that they will continue a large welfare program for the poor, despite very limited fiscal space going forward. They pitted against each other and launched online smear campaigns – with far more attacks coming from Bolsonaro’s camp. His four years in office were marked by avowed conservatism and defense of traditional Christian values. He claimed without any evidence that da Silva’s return to power would lead to communism, drug legalization, abortion and persecution of the churches. Da Silva weighed in on Bolsonaro’s widely criticized handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and said the president had failed to care for members of society who were most in need. In campaign videos, da Silva took aim at Bolsonaro for being behind a policy that funnels billions to lawmakers for pet projects in exchange for political support. Referred to as a “secret budget”, due to a lack of transparency about the end uses of the money, da Silva said it depleted funds for basic social spending. Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 09:20 1667120376
“Politically, Bolsonaro is stronger than we thought”
Candidates in Brazil who finish ahead in the first round tend to win the second round. But political scientist Rodrigo Prado said this campaign is so informal that a Bolsonaro victory could not be ruled out. The president secured endorsements from the governors of the three most populous states, and allied politicians scored big victories in congressional races. “Politically, Bolsonaro is stronger than we thought,” said Prado, a professor at Mackenzie Presbyterian University in Sao Paulo. “Mathically, Lula is ahead.” More than 150 million Brazilians are eligible to vote, but about 20% of the electorate abstained in the first round. The Supreme Court ruled that state capitals can provide free public transport on election day, and both da Silva and Bolsonaro have focused their efforts on boosting turnout. (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 08:59 1667117869
More than 120 million Brazilians are expected to vote
The vote will determine whether the world’s fourth-largest democracy stays on the same path of far-right politics or returns a leftist to the top job — and, in the latter case, whether Bolsonaro accepts defeat. More than 120 million Brazilians are expected to vote, but because voting is conducted electronically, the final result is usually available within hours of polls closing in the late afternoon. Most polls gave da Silva, known worldwide as Lula, the lead, although political analysts agreed that the race had become increasingly tight in recent weeks. For months, da Silva appeared headed for an easy victory as he stoked nostalgia for his 2003-2010 presidency, when Brazil’s economy boomed and prosperity helped tens of millions join the middle class. But in the Oct. 2 first-round election, da Silva finished first among 11 candidates with 48 percent of the vote, while Bolsonaro was second with 43 percent, showing that polls significantly underestimated the president’s popularity. Many Brazilians support Bolsonaro’s defense of conservative social values, and he has backed it with massive government spending. (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved) Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 08:17 1667116021
The close race offers a second chance for both candidates
Bolsonaro has vowed to cement a sharp conservative turn in Brazilian politics after a presidency marred by the pandemic. Lula is promising more social and environmental responsibility, recalling the growing prosperity of his 2003-2010 presidency, before corruption scandals tarnished his Workers’ Party. Some 120 million voters are expected to cast their ballots in electronic voting machines that Bolsonaro has criticized without evidence as prone to fraud, raising concerns that he may not concede defeat, following the example of ideological ally former US President Donald Trump. That added to tensions in Brazil’s most polarizing election since the return of democracy in 1985 after a military dictatorship that Lula, a former union leader, rallied against and Bolsonaro, a former army chief, invokes with nostalgia. Sam Rkaina30 October 2022 07:47 1667113250
The President of Brazil is doing the Argentinian booga of the election campaign
As a Brazilian journalist living in Argentina, Luciana Taddeo says she’s putting more and more effort into refuting increasingly crazy rumors. There were claims that Argentina’s presidential palace had been invaded, that people had to leave their keys in the ignition of their cars so the government could use them at any time, that the government had abolished the right of inheritance. Many of those rumors have been fueled by the presidential election in neighboring Brazil, where incumbent Jair Bolsonaro has turned Argentina — already a bitter soccer rival — into a kind of political bamboo, a warning of the horrors his nation could face. if he elects leftist ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Stuti Mishra30 October 2022 07:00 1667112050
He fears that Bolsonaro will refuse to accept defeat
The final hours of the toxic feud between hardline President Jair Bolsonaro and leftist former leader Lula Inácio Lula da Silva, popularly known as Lula, have seen bitter recriminations and recriminations, as well as repeated warnings of possible widespread violence after Sunday’s polls. There are serious concerns that Mr Bolsonaro, a former army chief who enjoys the nickname “Trump of the Tropics”, will refuse to…
