🔶 Brazil elections; the contest between Bolsonaro and Lula extended to a second round

🔶 Brazil elections; the contest between Bolsonaro and Lula extended to a second round

The race in the Brazilian presidential election between Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the current leftist president, and Flávio Bolsonaro, his right-wing rival, was extended to a second round.

According to early statistics from the Brazilian electoral body, after counting 97% of the votes, Lula won about 44.6% and his right-wing rival 47.4% of the votes; therefore, neither of them achieved the absolute majority required to win in the first round.

Since neither candidate won more than 50% of the valid votes, the top two candidates will face each other in a second round on October 25.

In the early stages of the vote count, Bolsonaro had more than 50% of the votes. However, the southern states, which lean more toward him, announced their results faster, while the vote count in the northeast, Lula's main base, was slower. Lula, a left-wing politician currently 80 years old, is seeking his fourth term as president. Flávio Bolsonaro, 45, also wants to continue the legacy of his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro.

Jair Bolsonaro is under house arrest and was sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempted a coup d'état.