Brazil’s presidential election campaign intensified on Sunday as supporters of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro staged major rallies ahead of their first televised debate. With the October 25 runoff approaching, both candidates are seeking to gain momentum in a closely contested race.
In Sao Paulo, thousands of Bolsonaro supporters gathered along Paulista Avenue, wearing Brazil’s national colors of yellow, green and blue. The right-wing presidential candidate appeared on a float before addressing the enthusiastic crowd in the city’s financial district.
Meanwhile, Lula supporters dressed in red, representing his Workers’ Party, assembled in Brasilia’s government plaza. Students backing the leftist president also organized demonstrations against Bolsonaro in Rio de Janeiro, highlighting the political divisions shaping Brazil’s presidential runoff.
Recent opinion polls indicate a tight contest, with Bolsonaro maintaining a narrow advantage after defeating Lula by nearly two percentage points in the October 4 first-round election.
Both campaigns are now targeting approximately 33 million registered voters who abstained from the first round, representing roughly 20% of eligible voters. Their participation could prove decisive in determining Brazil’s next president.
The highly anticipated presidential debate is scheduled for 8 p.m. local time in Sao Paulo, corresponding to 2300 GMT, and will be broadcast by Band.
Televised debates were once central to Brazilian democracy following the end of military rule in 1985. However, their influence has weakened as major candidates increasingly avoid direct confrontations. The final debate before the first round was canceled after both Lula and Bolsonaro withdrew.
Adding to election tensions, a controversy involving Meta’s social media platforms has raised questions about political neutrality during the campaign.
Lula’s coalition alleged that his Instagram account and posts faced restrictions. Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo reported internal Meta communications acknowledging those limitations while indicating that Bolsonaro’s Instagram profile and WhatsApp channel had been recommended to users.
Meta attributed the disruptions to worldwide technical problems and rejected allegations of political favoritism.
“Any suggestion that Meta favors one side is false,” the company stated.
With the Brazil presidential runoff just days away, voter turnout, debate performances and social media controversies could influence the outcome of one of the country’s most closely watched elections.
