Brazil presidential election don head to second round between leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro. Di race don prolong di kain deep polarisation wey get big meaning for di kontri and di region. Brazil electoral court confirm on Sunday say di two candidates go advance to run-off on October 25. Nobody win majority wey need to take presidency outright for first round. Bolsonaro lead with 56 million votes, while Lula get almost 53 million votes.
Lula, 80, dey seek fourth, non-consecutive term after political career wey span nearly five decades. Bolsonaro, 45, na eldest son of former President Jair Bolsonaro. He dey try return him papa right-wing movement to power. Di former president dey serve 27-year prison sentence for plotting coup after he lose 2022 election.
Di election come for pivotal time for Latin America biggest economy. Brazilians dey worry about crime and cost of living. Di kontri also face increasingly tense relationship with United States. Di vote dey monitored across region wey don shift sharply to right in recent elections.
Second round bin widely expected, but first-round result no play out exactly as pollsters predict. With nearly 99 percent of votes reported, Bolsonaro get about 47 percent of valid votes, compared with 44.9 percent for Lula. Neither reach 50 percent threshold needed to win first round. Dat set up another Lula-Bolsonaro showdown, four years after Lula narrowly defeat former President Jair Bolsonaro. This time, he go face former president eldest son.
Di race fit close well well. Polling before Sunday vote suggest Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro roughly tied in potential run-off. Dat put voters wey back one of other 10 candidates for first round at centre of fight for presidency over next three weeks. Ronaldo Caiado and Renan Santos, wey together receive about 5.3 million votes, don talk before say dem no go endorse either candidate for run-off.
Most polls before election day predict race go enter second round, but dem put Lula finishing first round ahead of Bolsonaro. Instead, Bolsonaro come out with lead of two percentage points. Dis raise questions about why final polls underestimate him support. On Sunday, Bolsonaro talk say results show say Brazilians want change. Analysts tell Reuters say Bolsonaro fit benefit from protest votes from people wey maybe prefer another candidate but see defeating Lula as priority. Many bin expect to shift support to Bolsonaro only for second round, meaning dis fit get consequences for him support in three weeks. Political analyst Rafael Favetti tell Reuters say di protest vote foreshadow wetin dey come for run-off. He talk say while dis suppose benefit Flavio Bolsonaro now, him growth potential for second round drop precisely because dat support don already front-loaded.
After results come in, Lula talk say di votes na unexpected but say he go come back stronger for run-off. He talk say, I admit, I bin convinced I go win for first round. Di game dey about to start. We dey extra time. For extra time, we go win over Brazilian people. Na wetin di 80-year-old talk.
Bolsonaro surprising performance for first round be part of broader show of strength for Brazil right. Right-wing parties, led by Bolsonaro Liberal Party (PL), dey perform strongly for both houses of Congress. PL dey on track to emerge as largest force for Chamber of Deputies and dey make gains for Senate. Dis include victories for other members of Bolsonaro family, including former First Lady Michelle Bolsonaro, Flavio stepmother, wey win Senate seat for Federal District, her first elected office. Him brother, Carlos Bolsonaro, win Senate for Santa Catarina.
Di results show say political movement built around former President Jair Bolsonaro, known as bolsonarista, remain powerful electoral force, even with former president barred from running himself. Andre Pagliarini, assistant professor of history and international studies at Louisiana State University and author of book on Lula, tell Al Jazeera say di fact say far-right candidates for legislature exceed all expectations suggest deeper popular grounding for bolsonarista project than many expect. He add say millions of Brazilians right now evidently feel say right best reflect dia values and vision for future.
Di congressional results matter beyond election night. Both houses already dominated by conservative lawmakers, and stronger right-wing presence fit make am even harder for Lula to push through him agenda if he win another term. A Bolsonaro victory, meanwhile, fit give him more room to pursue him own priorities, including him pledge to seek amnesty for him father.
