Polls close in Brazil’s polarizing Bolsonaro-Lula contest

Polls successful Brazil closed connected Sunday day successful a polarizing statesmanlike runoff predetermination that pits an incumbent vowing to safeguard blimpish Christian values against a erstwhile president promising to instrumentality the state to a much prosperous past.

The runoff shaped up arsenic a adjacent contention betwixt President Jair Bolsonaro and his governmental nemesis, erstwhile President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Both are well-known, divisive governmental figures who disturbance passionateness arsenic overmuch arsenic loathing.

The electoral authorization had begun counting ballots and, due to the fact that the ballot is conducted electronically, the last effect is usually disposable wrong hours aft voting stations close.

The ballot volition find if the world's fourth-largest ideology stays the aforesaid people of far-right authorities oregon returns a leftist to the apical occupation — and, successful the second case, whether Bolsonaro volition judge defeat. There were aggregate reports of what critics said appeared attempts to suppress the turnout of apt da Silva voters.

Voting stations successful the capital, Brasilia, were already crowded by greeting and, astatine 1 of them, retired authorities idiosyncratic Luiz Carlos Gomes said helium would ballot for da Silva.

"He's the champion for the poor, particularly successful the countryside," said Gomes, 65, who hails from Maranhao authorities successful the mediocre northeast region. "We were ever starving earlier him."

Because the ballot is conducted electronically, the last effect is usually disposable wrong hours aft voting stations adjacent successful the precocious afternoon. Most sentiment polls gave a pb to da Silva, universally known arsenic Lula, though governmental analysts agreed the contention grew progressively choky successful caller weeks.

For months, it appeared that da Silva was headed for casual triumph arsenic helium kindled nostalgia for his 2003-2010 presidency, erstwhile Brazil's system was booming and payment helped tens of millions articulation the mediate class.

But portion da Silva topped the Oct. 2 first-round elections with 48% of the vote, Bolsonaro was a beardown 2nd astatine 43%, showing sentiment polls importantly underestimated his popularity. Many Brazilians enactment Bolsonaro's defence of blimpish societal values and helium has shored up enactment with immense authorities spending.

Candidates successful Brazil who apical the archetypal circular thin to triumph the runoff. But governmental idiosyncratic Rodrigo Prando said this run is truthful atypical that a Bolsonaro triumph could not beryllium ruled out.

More than 150 cardinal Brazilians are eligible to vote, yet astir 20% of the electorate abstained successful the archetypal round. Both da Silva and Bolsonaro person focused efforts connected driving turnout. The electoral authorization prohibited immoderate national road constabulary operations from affecting voters' transition connected nationalist transport.

Still, determination were aggregate reports of checkpoints and postulation stops. Television web Globo reported much than 500 stops, fractional of which were successful the northeast region, a Workers' Party stronghold. The enactment filed a petition for the apprehension of the road police's manager and demanded the region's polls stay unfastened later.

Human Rights Watch, an planetary nonprofit, said successful a connection it was "very concerned" astir the reports.

Speaking to reporters successful Brasilia, the electoral authority's president Alexandre de Moraes said the constabulary force's manager had provided clarification that nary halt lasted implicit 15 minutes, turnout wasn't affected and polls would adjacent astatine 5 p.m. section time, arsenic scheduled.

"(Stops) were made successful accordance with postulation laws and that stalled immoderate voters, but each arrived to their voting places. No autobus returned to its constituent of origin," said de Moraes, adding that each postulation stops person since been suspended.

"If determination was an maltreatment of power, that is an electoral crime. And we volition look into that," de Moraes said.

Gleisi Hoffmann, who leads the Workers' Party, told reporters successful Sao Paulo she doesn't judge each voters stalled so formed their ballots, but besides said her enactment doesn't person an estimation arsenic to however galore radical whitethorn person been deterred.

"We can't deliberation these voters arrived conscionable due to the fact that the road constabulary said so," Hoffmann said successful a property conference. "The caput of the road constabulary is simply a militant of the Bolsonaro campaign."

Bolsonaro was archetypal successful enactment to formed his ballot astatine a subject analyzable successful Rio de Janeiro. He sported the greenish and yellowish colors of the Brazilian emblem that ever diagnostic astatine his rallies.

"I'm expecting our victory, for the bully of Brazil," helium told reporters afterward. "God willing, we volition beryllium victorious this afternoon. Actually, Brazil volition beryllium victorious."

Da Silva voted Sunday greeting successful Sao Bernardo bash Campo, a metropolis extracurricular Sao Paulo, wherever helium lived for decades and started his governmental vocation arsenic a national leader. He wore white, arsenic helium often has during the campaign, alternatively than his party's accepted red.

"Today we are choosing the benignant of Brazil we want, however we privation our nine to organize. People volition determine what benignant of beingness they want," da Silva told reporters. "That's wherefore this is the astir important time of my life. I americium convinced that Brazilians volition ballot for a program nether which ideology wins."

The candidates presented fewer proposals for the country's aboriginal beyond affirming they volition proceed a large payment programme for the poor, contempt precise constricted fiscal country going forward. They railed against 1 different and launched online smear campaigns — with considerably much attacks coming from Bolsonaro's camp.

On the eve of the election, Bolsonaro shared a video connected Twitter of erstwhile U.S. President Donald Trump endorsing him, saying that helium has secured Brazil's cosmopolitan respect connected the satellite stage. Da Silva has specifically criticized Bolsonaro for the nation's fallen stature abroad, highlighting the dearth of authorities visits and bilateral meetings.

"Don't suffer him, don't fto that happen," Trump said successful the video. "It would not beryllium bully for your country. I emotion your country, but it would not beryllium good. So get retired and ballot for President Bolsonaro. He's doing the occupation similar fewer radical could."

His 4 years successful bureau person been marked by proclaimed conservatism and defence of accepted Christian values. He claimed that his rival's instrumentality to powerfulness would usher successful communism, legalized drugs, termination and the persecution of churches — things that didn't hap during da Silva's earlier 8 years successful office.

On Sunday, Livia Correia and her husband, Pedro, brought her 2 young kids to a voting presumption successful Rio's Copacabana neighborhood, wherever Bolsonaro supporters regularly rally. They each wore green-and-yellow shirts. Livia, 36, said she voted for Bolsonaro due to the fact that helium defends the things she holds dear: "family values, God and state of expression."

Da Silva has homed successful connected Bolsonaro's wide criticized handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and said the president failed to attraction for society's neediest members. And helium painted Bolsonaro arsenic an hostile of the Amazon rainforest, fixed that helium defanged biology authorities and presided implicit a surge successful deforestation.

But for many, the grounds of da Silva's Workers' Party is arsenic off-putting. A sprawling probe revealed the party's engagement successful immense corruption scandals that ensnared apical politicians and executives.

Da Silva himself was imprisoned for 19 months for corruption and wealth laundering. The Supreme Court annulled his convictions successful 2019, connected the grounds that the justice was biased and colluded with prosecutors. That did not halt Bolsonaro from reminding voters of the convictions.

The president's tremendous integer mobilization was connected show successful caller days arsenic his run introduced caller — and unproven — claims of imaginable electoral manipulation. That revived fears that Bolsonaro could situation predetermination results should helium suffer — overmuch similar Trump, whom helium admires.

For months, helium claimed that the nation's physics voting machines are prone to fraud, though helium ne'er presented evidence, adjacent aft the electoral authorization acceptable a deadline for him to bash so.

More recently, allegations focused connected airtime for governmental ads. Bolsonaro's run claimed that vigor stations whitethorn person wounded their campaigner by failing to aerial much than 150,000 electoral spots.

"If da Silva wins, we're going to person a problem," said Pedro Correia, 40, who joined his woman and 2 children successful Copacabana.

"It's intolerable that helium wins," helium said.