The latest polls indicated that leftist candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was near to a resounding victory over incumbent far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro as Brazilian voters went to the polls on Sunday for a presidential election.
The outcome of Brazil’s most divisive election in decades will determine whether a former president who was imprisoned for corruption charges or a right-wing populist who has criticised the electoral process and pledged to contest his defeat will take office again.
A difficult run-off election on October 30 would be avoided if Lula da Silva won the majority of valid votes in the first round, according to two opinion polls issued in the afternoon.
The two candidates who receive the most votes will compete in the second round of voting at the end of October if none of the 11 candidates receives more than 50% of the vote.
During the final discussion prior to the elections, Lula and Bolsonaro reportedly levelled accusations of corruption at one another.
Former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a socialist adversary, was referred to by President Bolsonaro as the leader of a criminal gang that presided over a “government of thieves” from 2003 to 2010 during his two terms in office.
For his part, Lula called Bolsonaro, a candidate from the right, a “shameless” liar whose administration covered up corruption in the purchase of vaccinations during the Covid-19 outbreak that killed more than 680,000 Brazilians.
Bolsonaro has often denounced Brazil’s electronic voting system as susceptible to fraud without giving proof, although it allows the National Elections Authority to quickly count results several hours after polls close at 8 p. m. GMT.
Alexandre de Moraes, President of the Supreme Court and head of the National Electoral Authority, urged Brazilians to vote on Twitter “in peace, security, harmony, respect, and freedom” to honour the nation’s democracy.
The National Elections Authority sent out an unusual number of invitations to international observers to attend this year’s elections because to Bolsonaro’s attacks on the electoral process and the likelihood of violence.
Arab News on Sky.
Brazil elects a new president at the polls.
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