The Americas | Bolsonarismo battles on

Brazil’s presidential election will go to a run-off

Jair Bolsonaro did better than expected. Lula is still the favourite, but narrowly

A Supporter of Brazilian former President (2003-2010) and candidate for the leftist Workers Party (PT) Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva reacts as she watches the vote count of the legislative and presidential election, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on October 2, 2022. - Brazilians voted Sunday in a polarizing presidential election which front-runner Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva hopes to take in the first round as incumbent Jair Bolsonaro says he will accept the result if it is "clean." (Photo by ANDRE BORGES / AFP) (Photo by ANDRE BORGES/AFP via Getty Images)
|São Paulo

FOR LUIZ INÁCIO LULA DA SILVA, Brazil’s leftist former president, it was a disappointing result. His supporters had dared to hope that Lula, as he is known, might win an outright majority in a presidential election on October 2nd. Instead the race was far tighter than most opinion polls had predicted. Lula attracted 48% of the vote, while Jair Bolsonaro, the hard-right populist incumbent, won 43%. The pair will face each other in a run-off on October 30th.

This article appeared in the The Americas section of the print edition under the headline “Bolsonarismo battles on”

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