Poll shows right-wing candidate with two percent advantage over Lula going into second round of voting on October 25.
A new poll has found that right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro maintains a slight lead over President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as the two candidates seek an edge ahead of Brazil’s tense October 25 runoff vote.
A Quaest poll released on Thursday found that Bolsonaro, son of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, has received 46 percent support among respondents, compared to Lula’s 44 percent.
But that difference still falls within the two-percent margin of error, with many experts considering the runoff too close to call.
Bolsonaro outperformed expectations during the first round of voting on October 4, beating Lula by less than two points despite most polls suggesting that the leftist president was on track for a marginal first-round win. Neither candidate secured the majority necessary to avoid a run-off.
The poll, the first released by Quaest since the initial round of voting, shows that Bolsonaro has held onto his lead and remains the favourite heading into the second round.
A separate Datafolha poll released on Thursday also found that Bolsonaro leading Lula. But it determined that his advantage has shrunk over the last week from four points to two points.
While Bolsonaro had 49 percent support last week, in Thursday’s poll had his advantage narrowing to 47 percent, compared with 45 percent for Lula.
Lula has sought to rally his supporters after the October 4 loss, holding large rallies that have drawn millions of people onto the street.
While Bolsonaro has remained ahead in the polls, analysts have pointed out that he has not benefitted as much from the elimination of several conservative candidates, whose supporters would presumably prefer him to Lula, as might have been expected after the first round.
Bolsonaro has nevertheless made progress securing endorsements from right and centre-right parties,as he seeks to consolidate support from conservatives and build a coalition friendly to business interests and investors.
Lula, meanwhile, has been touting his platform for social reform in the final weeks before the runoff election.
Brazil’s Senate approved a constitutional amendment on Wednesday reducing the country’s maximum workweek from 44 to 40 hours per week without a reduction in pay.
That change was a key policy priority for Lula, as the president presses his case to an electorate that is anxious about cost-of-living issues.
“Today is a day to celebrate a historic achievement for millions of workers,” Lula said in a statement. “This means having more time to live, rest, be with family, watch your children grow up, take care of yourself, and enjoy life. Those who work so hard to build Brazil also deserve to have time to live.”
The president also recently banned sports betting, which had caused an explosion of gambling addiction and contributed to surging household debt across the country.
On Thursday, he indicated that he would submit a constitutional amendment to Congress guaranteeing free public transportation in all Brazilian cities on weekends, in another gesture to lowering costs for working-class households.
Extracted and lightly reformatted for readability. · Source: pt