Brazilians are voting in a closely fought presidential election between progressive incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and conservative senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro.
About 159 million people are eligible to vote in South America’s largest country. Polling stations are due to close at 5pm on Sunday, with provisional results expected later the same day.
Lula, 80, is seeking a fourth term in office, while Flávio Bolsonaro is contesting the presidency for the first time. Twelve candidates are standing, although the remaining contenders are polling well behind the two frontrunners.
Some pre-election polls have indicated that either candidate could win outright. If neither secures a majority, as is considered likely, the election will proceed to a run-off on October 25.
Lula cast his ballot shortly after 9am at a school in São Bernardo do Campo, outside São Paulo. He said he was confident of securing his first outright victory in seven presidential campaigns and urged Brazilians aged over 70, who are not legally required to vote, to take part.
Wearing a hat to protect his head following a skin cancer diagnosis, Lula said he would need “to do double what we have done” if re-elected.
“I am more than ready to lead this country and restore to Brazilian families the right to dream again,” he said.
Flávio Bolsonaro voted at a school in Rio de Janeiro after arriving at 8.10am. He wore a light yellow shirt with a “22” sticker, the number voters must enter on electronic voting machines to support him.
“Brazil needs change, Brazil can’t stand so much suffering,” he told reporters, adding: “I am more than prepared to preside this country to give back to Brazilians the right to dream.”
The issues shaping Brazil’s presidential election
The campaign has centred on crime, the role of the state, the independence of the Supreme Court and Brazil’s relations with the United States.
Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party is campaigning for reduced state services and a tougher approach to crime. Lula’s Workers’ Party is seeking to continue social programmes and public investment while retaining a strong role for the state.
Lula returned to the presidency in 2023 after previously serving from 2003 to 2010. Flávio Bolsonaro has been a senator since 2019.
His father narrowly lost the 2022 presidential election to Lula and was later sentenced by the Supreme Court to more than 27 years in prison for an attempted coup following his defeat. Jair Bolsonaro is serving the sentence under house arrest because of health problems.
Voters are also electing two-thirds of Brazil’s 81-member Senate, all 513 members of the Chamber of Deputies, governors in the country’s 26 states and the Federal District, and members of state legislatures.
