Lessons from Brazil's presidential runoff
The gist
Brazil's leftist president Lula won the runoff with 51.79% against Flávio Bolsonaro's 48.21%.
It is the first runoff comeback in Brazil's democratic history, and markets fell sharply.
How it unfolded
- 2022Jair Bolsonaro narrowly lost to Lula and is now serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup to overturn that result.
- Oct 4, 2026In the first round, Flávio Bolsonaro finished roughly two million votes ahead of Lula, 47% to 45% of valid votes.
- Oct 18, 2026Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro took part in a presidential debate in São Paulo ahead of the runoff.