Lula heads to runoff behind Flávio Bolsonaro, vows new campaign phase

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva acknowledged on Sunday that he expected to win the presidential election in the first round but will now face Senator Flávio Bolsonaro in a runoff on 25 October. With 99.87% of votes counted, Bolsonaro leads with 47.06% against Lula's 45.12%, a margin of roughly 2.4 million votes.

Speaking at a rally in São Paulo alongside Vice President Geraldo Alckmin and former President Dilma Rousseff, Lula said a new campaign phase begins Monday focused on contrasting the two projects for Brazil. He pledged to prioritise education, science, technology, industrial development, and the expansion of the SUS public health system.

“I confess to you that I was convinced I would win the elections in the first round. But I also thought that other times. I am very good in the knockout, in the head-to-head.”

Lula sharply attacked the Bolsonaro family's record, citing alleged links to militias, organised crime, and the Banco Master scandal, which he called the largest financial fraud in Brazil's history. He argued that a Bolsonaro victory would offer no promising horizon for the country.

The president also lamented defeats for his allies in São Paulo, where Simone Tebet, Marina Silva, and Fernando Haddad lost their Senate and gubernatorial races. Lula expressed confidence in his runoff prospects, noting he has reached second rounds in every presidential bid since 1989.