The political violence of recent weeks could increase abstinence and make it difficult for Lula da Silva to win in the first round
A total of 156.4 million Brazilians will decide this Sunday who will determine Brazil’s fate in the next four years. The choice is between Jair Bolsonaro, ex-military leader of the right (Liberal Party) and current president, and Lula da Silva, ex-governor and leader of the left (Partido de los Trabajadores). The polls point to Lula as the firm favorite, even to win in the first round, with a 14-point lead. However, the abstention, which may be influenced by fears in the country given the political violence experienced during the campaign, could result in citizens having to vote again in a second round on October 29.
To secure the presidency in the first round, the winner must obtain more than 50% of the valid votes, including blank and invalid votes. Lula’s victory would mark the shift that several Latin American countries have made to the left. A few weeks ago it was Colombia with the election of Gustavo Petro, who followed Chile with Gabriel Boric, and before that it was Peru with Professor Pedro Castillo.
A further nine candidatures were validated in these elections, which are a long way from Bolsonaro and Lula. Ciro Gomes (PDT, Democratic Labor Party), who is running for the fourth time, governor of Ceará and former minister with two other governments; José María Eymael, Christian Democrat, deputy from São Paulo and present for the sixth time in these elections; Felipe D’Avila, of the Novo party, an ultra-liberal close to Bolsonaro; Leo Pericles, of the People’s Union, who is the only black candidate and excels in the native struggle; Simone Tebet, of the Brazilian Democratic Movement, the first woman to lead the feminist movement; Sofía Manzano, another Communist Party trade unionist; Soraya Thromicki, a former Bolsonarist who is now against him but defends ideas from the right; Vera Lucía Salgado, of the Socialist Workers’ Party, also a trade unionist and the only black woman in these elections; and Father Kelmon, of the Conservative Party and clearly identified as an aide to Bolsonaro.
The fact that Lula da Silva is in the ‘pole position’ is considered a true resurrection of the 76-year-old politician, a former gymnast, son of illiterate parents, who served a sentence in prison three years ago, in which he served 580 days before allegations of corruption that were later found to be false. The Federal Supreme Court ruled that the judge hearing their cases was not impartial.
Before suffering such an injustice, Lula had 80% approval from his government after serving two terms between 2003 and 2010. It seemed that this would mark the end of his political career. But not. He proves otherwise: “I was tried and today I am cleaner than he is,” Lula Bolsonaro recalled in the first televised debate, in which the current president always called him “ex-prisoner”. The memory of his years as president, when poverty fell and the country experienced great development, may influence Lula’s possible return to power. It has the votes of the majority of women, blacks, indigenous peoples, the poorest and the population of the Northeast.
Bolsonaro has promised that Brazil will regain economic power and lower inflation by the end of the year, today at 8.8%. But against him is the fact that the country currently has 33 million people who do not have enough to eat every day, and especially the mismanagement during the Covid-19 pandemic in which 685,000 Brazilians died. Half of them accuse the president of not attaching sufficient importance to the virus. His ideas, in which he defends the use of guns, the death penalty, homophobia, misogyny, racism and anti-abortion, are found guilty of the adversity Brazil has experienced.
These elections will also elect vice presidents and governors of 27 states, partially renew the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate, as well as the legislative assemblies of each region. The elections are organized by the Electoral Justice, but the highest body is the Superior Electoral Court, chaired by Alexandre De Moraes, a man who is suing Bolsonaro for the doubts expressed about the whole process.
The campaigns of the two top candidates have been marked by violence and the fear many Brazilians have that Jair Bolsonaro, like Donald Trump in the United States, will not accept the results if defeated and will try to continue as head of government. . In this country, one of the most populous in the world, there is a tension that, according to several analysts consulted in this way, had not been experienced in a long time. The candidates themselves have been unable to send strong messages of reassurance to their supporters, instead fanning the electoral fire with personal insults and very serious accusations.
The latest incident was recorded in Brasilia and was witnessed by the car of Bolsonaro’s ex-wife, Ana Cristina Valle, a local police officer, who was stoned and her house painted with spray and red ink, saying ‘Death to Bolsonaro’.
Unlike other elections, the whole of Brazil has a uniform time to vote between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM for the first time. The cities of different zones will have to adapt to the time of the capital. The results will be announced from 5 pm (23.oo in Spain). In total, 577,125 teams of six different models of electronic ballot boxes are ready to receive voters.
Voting in Brazil is compulsory for citizens between the ages of 18 and 69, and optional for the illiterate, young people between the ages of 16 and 17 and those over 70. Failure to comply with their voting obligation or failing to provide proof that is compatible with the law is subject to sanctions. Any unwarranted absence from the polls generates a debt to the Electoral Court and as long as the situation is not regularized – by paying the fine or getting an exemption from it – the voter is subject to a series of important restrictions.
So you cannot receive salaries, benefits, wages or benefits from public office. You also cannot participate in public tenders. You cannot get loans from municipalities, federal and state savings banks, social security agencies and funds, or from a government-subsidized lending institution.
Collectors and hunters are not allowed to carry weapons. Cell phones are not allowed to enter the voting booth and each state decides whether to ban the use of alcoholic beverages.
Source: La Verdad
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
