The second round of the Brazilian presidential election suggests it will be a prolonged evening. When turnout reached 14 percent of the votes, Flavio Bolsonaro took the lead, having been previously behind the incumbent Lula da Silva during the first nearly three hours after the polling places closed. Bolsonaro solidified his advantage, reaching 50.4 percent of the votes by the time the tally hit 33 percent. This follows the initial election round three weeks ago, where Bolsonaro came in first with 47 percent, and Lula received approximately 45 percent.
The 45-year-old Bolsonaro previously served as a deputy in the state of Rio de Janeiro and has been a member of the Brazilian Senate since 2019. His candidacy is inextricably linked to his father’s political history. Jair Bolsonaro shaped Brazilian politics with his right-conservative, populist stance and became a symbol of a deeply divided society. While the younger Bolsonaro has recently attempted to appear more moderate and signal a willingness to compromise, many Brazilians still perceive him as sharing the same values as his father: radical economic liberalism and decisive action against the country’s high crime rate.
