Brazil gears up for a thrilling presidential run-off featuring incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva against challenger Flávio Bolsonaro.
Brazilian voters are set to cast their ballots on Sunday in a tightly contested presidential run-off between incumbent left-wing leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, 80, and right-wing senator Flávio Bolsonaro, 45.Lula is seeking a fourth, non-consecutive term as president, while Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, is attempting to secure the top office. His father is serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 election, according to BBC report.Bolsonaro enters the final round with momentum after finishing ahead of Lula in the first round of voting on October 4. US President Donald Trump described that result as a “very big” victory.No candidate who has finished behind their rival in the first round has ever managed to overturn the deficit and win Brazil's presidential run-off.
Bolsonaro supporters call for change
Supporters of Flávio Bolsonaro expressed confidence at his final campaign rallies, backing his promises to tackle organised crime through tougher measures, reduce taxes and cut public spending.On the eve of the election, Bolsonaro campaigned in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais.
The state has been considered crucial for presidential candidates since the 1980s.“The time is almost here,” Bolsonaro said in a video posted on social media.“There are only a few hours left before we shape the future of our nation for the next 30 or 40 years,” he added.He has also pledged to secure the release of his father, who is serving his sentence under house arrest because of health problems.In Rio de Janeiro's Barra de Tijuca neighbourhood, where Jair Bolsonaro owns a home, supporters gathered wearing Brazil's national colours to demonstrate their backing for the senator.One supporter told BBC News that the country needed a change in leadership and described Flávio Bolsonaro as the candidate capable of delivering it after years of what the supporter called left-wing economic mismanagement.Another supporter said she was drawn to his promises to curb violence, tackle terrorism and drug trafficking, and bring down interest rates.
Lula rallies supporters around national sovereignty
Following Bolsonaro's first-round lead, Lula's supporters have organised large rallies in an effort to mobilise voters and increase turnout.
Around 33 million people did not vote in the first round earlier this month.Addressing a large gathering on Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana beach on Saturday, Lula framed the election as a question of national sovereignty. He said voters would have to choose between a leader who embraced Brazil's flag and one who embraced the American flag.Lula's government has accused the United States of interfering in Brazil's election, a charge Washington has dismissed as “baseless”.“We're going to win the election for one simple reason: it's true that the people want change [but] they want to move forward,” Lula told the crowd. “They don't want to go backward.”A Lula supporter, Roberta, told BBC News that the rallies were intended to demonstrate the movement's strength and encourage people to take to the streets to help reverse the first-round result.Another supporter, wearing Brazil's iconic yellow and green football shirt, said Bolsonaro's supporters had “appropriated” the national jersey, but Lula's backers were now reclaiming it.