In the first round of voting for the Brazilian election on Sunday, the former left-wing president received 48.4% of the vote, while the current President Jair Bolsonaro received 43.2% of the vote. The polls had expected a much larger margin of victory for him, but he won by a much narrower margin. This points to a tight contest for the second round that will take place at the end of the month.
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| [Brazilian President candidate Lula da Silva] |
Lula's attempt to win the bet was unsuccessful. That of wresting the president away from Jair Bolsonaro, the head of the extreme right-wing movement in Brazil, in the first round of voting, as some surveys had projected. According to almost final but still partial results of the Brazilian presidential election that took place on Sunday, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva obtained 48.4% of the vote, as opposed to the incumbent president, who obtained 43.2% of the vote, as indicated on the website of the authority in charge of national election (TSE). On October 30, the second round of this fiercely fought competition will take place.
During the tense evening of the election, Jair Bolsonaro was one of the candidates who was in the lead race. Up until nine o'clock local time, the partial vote count put him in the lead over his opponent. Then, when the votes of the areas that were friendly to Lula were taken into consideration, the deficit began to close, and the candidate for the left-wing party eventually achieved a five-point lead over the president who would be leaving office.
In the first round of voting for president, Lula receives the highest number of votes of any candidate on the left. In addition, an absolute majority is just missing from it by two points at this time. "It's nothing more than an expansion. I can tell you that we are going to win this election," he proclaimed to his supporters just after the proclamation of the results, while showing himself open to negotiations to regain the presidency which he has already held twice, between the years of 2003 and 2010. He had previously held the presidency in 2003 and 2010.
Jair Bolsonaro, for his part, sees a drop of three points when compared to the score he received four years ago. He explains that between the two rounds, there is a significant difference between them, and he would want to clarify it more to his opponent. "We are going to be capable of showing the edge of the people who has been the most punished by imprisonment, by all of those who claimed "the economy we would see later." We are able to demonstrate the effects of the conflict in other countries. I have no doubt that we will be able to demonstrate to people that the changes they advocate for will be worse [than what we support]. We are aware of what is going on in Colombia, Chile, and Argentina right now. After the results were announced, he made the following statement: "This should be the focus of our efforts leading up to the second round."
Jair Bolsonaro has another reason to be happy of his victory: some of his supporters won in the three most important states in the south-east, which is the most prosperous part of the country economically. His protégé Claudio Castro was successful in being re-elected as governor of Rio de Janeiro in the first round of voting. And in Sao Paulo, the city's former Minister of Infrastructure, Tarcisio Gomes, is now leading Fernando Haddad, the candidate of the Workers' Party, in a favorable ballot, despite Haddad being the favorite. Jair Bolsonaro's candidates have also done well in the polls for the upcoming congressional elections.
"Polls have significantly understated the public support for candidates on the right in the southeast area. The outcome is not at all good for those on the left. An expert who is affiliated with the left said that the recent advances made by the right in the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate would make it more difficult to rule in the event that Lula is victorious in the next election.
The other contenders didn't have a chance and were eliminated. Simone Tebet, a candidate from the center, came in third place with 4% of the vote, surpassing Ciro Gomes, a candidate from the labor left, who earned 3%. However, despite their dismal performance, it is certain that they are the ones who hold the keys to moving on to the second round.