Polls have opened in Brazil as voters choose between incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and right-wing senator Flávio Bolsonaro in a closely contested presidential run-off.
Lula, 80, is seeking a fourth non-consecutive term in office, while Bolsonaro, 45, is campaigning on promises to tackle organised crime, cut taxes and reduce public spending.
Bolsonaro is the son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 election.
The younger Bolsonaro emerged as the frontrunner after winning the first round of voting on 4 October, a result US President Donald Trump described as a “very big” victory.
No candidate who has trailed after the first round has ever overturned the deficit to win Brazil’s presidential election in the second round.
Bolsonaro arrived at a polling station in Rio de Janeiro early on Sunday, telling reporters that “time has come for real change”.
His supporters expressed confidence during his final campaign rallies, backing his promises to crack down on organised crime and reduce taxes and public spending.
On the eve of the election, Bolsonaro campaigned in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais, a state considered crucial to presidential candidates since the 1980s.
“The time is almost here,” Bolsonaro told supporters in a social media video. “There are only a few hours left before we shape the future of our nation for the next 30 or 40 years.”
He has also pledged to release his father from prison. Jair Bolsonaro is currently serving his sentence under house arrest because of ill health.
In Barra de Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, where the former president has a home, supporters of his son gathered in Brazil’s national colours to demonstrate their support.
“Brazil needs change, and Flávio is the person that represents that today, after so many years of the Left destroying the economy and the country,” one supporter told BBC News.
Another supporter said she backed Flávio Bolsonaro because of his promise to “end violence in Brazil, end terrorism, narco-trafficking, and to reduce interest rates”.
Meanwhile, Lula’s supporters have organised large rallies since Bolsonaro’s first-round victory in an effort to increase turnout, after 33 million people did not vote earlier this month.
On Saturday, Lula addressed a large crowd on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach, describing the election as a matter of “sovereignty”.
He said voters would choose between a candidate who kissed the Brazilian flag and one who kissed the American flag.
Lula’s administration has accused the United States of interfering in Brazil’s election, an allegation Washington has called “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,” he said. “They don’t want to go backward.”
A supporter identified as Roberta told BBC News: “This movement is to show we have strength. We’ve woken up, we’re coming to the street to make a difference and turn the vote around.”
Another Lula supporter, wearing Brazil’s yellow and green football shirt, said Bolsonaro’s supporters had “appropriated” the jersey but Lula’s supporters were taking it back.
Lula and his Workers’ Party have described the election as a “battle for democracy”, arguing that Jair Bolsonaro’s conviction for coup-plotting showed that “Bolsonarismo” threatened Brazil’s democratic institutions.
Relations between Lula and US President Donald Trump have been strained during Lula’s latest term.
Lula has insisted that Brazil “does not fit into anyone’s backyard”, an apparent reference to Trump’s so-called “Donroe Doctrine”, which asserts US dominance in the Western Hemisphere.
Flávio Bolsonaro, however, has argued that cooperation with Washington to combat powerful criminal gangs would help restore state authority in areas where the groups hold significant influence.
He has also accused the Workers’ Party of corruption, pointing to financial scandals that have damaged the party’s standing among voters over the years.
Lula plans to watch the election results in São Paulo on Sunday evening, while Bolsonaro is expected to be in Brasília, where his father is under house arrest.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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