Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro face a tight Brazilian presidential runoff
Brazilians vote in a runoff between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and right-wing senator Flávio Bolsonaro, after Bolsonaro led the first round with 47.03% to Lula’s 45.16%. Final polls put them close: Reuters reported several surveys with narrow Bolsonaro leads, while a Datafolha poll cited by TRT World showed the candidates level. Reuters also reported that two US State Department officials pushed measures aimed at weakening Lula and supporting the Bolsonaro family; Washington said its actions were to protect Americans and that Brazilians had the right to choose their leaders.
Bottom line — The runoff follows a first-round lead for Bolsonaro and fresh Reuters reporting on alleged US efforts to aid his family’s return to power.
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Reuters found that US officials Darren Beattie and Ricardo Pita advocated sanctions against a Brazilian Supreme Court justice and terrorist designations for major gangs.
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Reuters could not establish how much the two officials influenced the decisions; the State Department did not answer questions about their specific directives.
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The US removed Justice Alexandre de Moraes from its Magnitsky sanctions list in December, Reuters reported.
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Reuters said US tariffs on Brazilian goods boosted Lula’s poll numbers, according to Brazilian political analysts, and were later watered down.
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Lula campaigned on social programmes and sovereignty; Bolsonaro promised a tougher crime policy and spending cuts, according to the BBC.
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Flávio Bolsonaro’s father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup, according to the BBC.