The incumbent overcame a first-round deficit to defeat Flávio Bolsonaro, taking 51.75% of the vote with nearly all ballots counted.
By The Haitian Tribune Staff
October 25, 2026
BRASÍLIA — Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won a fourth term as Brazil’s president Sunday, defeating right-wing challenger Flávio Bolsonaro in a closely contested runoff and reversing the result of the election’s first round.
With nearly 99% of votes counted, Lula had secured 51.75% of the vote, compared with 48.25% for Bolsonaro, according to the figures in the election report. The result capped a remarkable comeback for the 80-year-old incumbent, who had narrowly trailed Bolsonaro in the first round earlier this month.
The reversal was unprecedented in Brazil’s post-dictatorship era, according to the report. Since the country returned to democracy in the 1980s, no candidate who finished second in the first round had gone on to win the runoff.
Lula’s victory prompted celebrations in São Paulo, where he followed the vote count. The result also brought relief to many progressive voters who had faced weeks of uncertainty after his first-round loss.
The campaign placed two sharply different political visions before voters. Lula, a veteran leftist who has served three previous terms, sought another mandate from a country divided over its direction. Bolsonaro, 45, ran as a far-right challenger and the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro.
The narrow margin shows how deeply divided Brazil remains. Lula’s fourth term will begin with a substantial share of the electorate having voted for his opponent, leaving the new administration with the challenge of governing beyond its political base.
The count was still being finalized Sunday night, but the result marked one of the most striking reversals in recent Brazilian electoral history.
by the Haitian Tribune
