The Brazil election runoff on Sunday, October 25, gave President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva a fourth term. Official results put him on roughly 51.8% against 48.2% for Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, a gap of about 4.4 million votes. Bolsonaro has refused to accept the result and says he will ask for the vote to be annulled.
Key facts (as of October 2026)
- Lula won the October 25 runoff with about 51.8% of valid votes, according to the electoral court figures reported by Euronews and France 24.
- No candidate who lost the first round had gone on to win a Brazilian runoff since direct elections returned in 1989, NPR and France 24 noted.
- Lula’s new term starts on January 5, 2027, the BBC reported.
What happened in the Brazil election?
Flávio Bolsonaro, a senator and the oldest son of ex-president Jair Bolsonaro, finished ahead in the first round on October 4. So many analysts saw Lula as the underdog going into the runoff. Instead, the left-wing president closed the gap in three weeks with large street rallies and a heavy social media push, the BBC said.
Turnout helped. Euronews reported that abstention fell from 21% in the first round to 19% in the second.
Election day itself was messy. Around midday, Lula’s campaign asked for longer voting hours because some cities had cut bus services. Bolsonaro’s team also asked for more time in areas hit by heavy rain. Supreme Court Justice Cristiano Zanin then added two hours to the voting day, keeping polls open until 7 p.m., NPR reported. However, some polling stations had already switched off their electronic voting machines and could not reopen.
Bolsonaro later called the outcome “inexplicable,” according to NPR, and said he would challenge it.
Why does the Brazil election matter abroad?
Brazil is Latin America’s largest economy and a founding member of the BRICS group, alongside China, Russia, India and South Africa. As a result, its choices on trade and diplomacy carry weight well beyond South America.
Lula’s win also breaks a recent run of right-leaning victories in the region. Argentina, Chile and Colombia all have conservative leaders now, the BBC noted. Flávio Bolsonaro had promised closer ties with Washington, while Lula told supporters that Brazil would not be anyone’s backyard.
For Europe, climate is a big part of the story. According to the BBC, environmental groups welcomed the result because they had feared weaker protection for the Amazon under a Bolsonaro government. The BBC also pointed out that Brazil has the second-biggest known rare earth deposits on the planet.
What led to this result?
Lula, a former metalworker and union leader, first served as president from 2003 to 2010. He was jailed in 2018 on corruption charges that were later annulled on procedural grounds. He then beat Jair Bolsonaro in 2022.
The elder Bolsonaro is now serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup to overturn that 2022 defeat. NPR reported that he is under house arrest. During the campaign, Flávio Bolsonaro pledged to pardon his father.
Lula ran on falling poverty and unemployment during his third term. He also promised a 15% rise in his flagship welfare program and free weekend public transport nationwide, France 24 reported. Critics, meanwhile, pointed to the cost of living, crime and corruption scandals involving his Workers’ Party.
Social media became a battleground too. Lula’s campaign accused Meta of favoring his rival. Meta denied that, although it acknowledged that some of the campaign’s ads had been switched off in error, according to France 24.
How have leaders and voters reacted?
Lula’s supporters filled streets in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro on Sunday night. In his victory speech, Lula called the result a defeat of denialism and lies, NPR reported.
Congratulations came from across the political spectrum. They included Chile’s right-wing president, José Antonio Kast, Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa and Mexico’s left-wing president, Claudia Sheinbaum, France 24 said.
On the other side, almost half of voters backed Bolsonaro. His Liberal Party (PL) made the biggest gains of any party in Congress, the BBC reported. In short, Lula will lead a deeply divided country.
What happens next after the Brazil election?
Lula is due to be sworn in on January 5, 2027. Before then, Bolsonaro has said he will formally ask for the vote to be annulled. No ruling on such a request had been reported as of Monday.
Governing will be hard. The PL and its allies could control over 280 lower-house seats and as many as 50 Senate seats, France 24 reported, citing Reuters. The government also expects only 2.3% growth next year, while public debt has passed 82% of GDP.
Lula turns 81 this week, according to NPR. He would be 85 by the end of the new term.
How to follow live coverage
Several English-language channels are following Brazil’s transition. BBC News has reporters in Brasília and São Paulo, CNN covers it for US viewers, and France 24 English and DW News add a European angle. If you are traveling, see our guide to watching US news abroad, and find more stories on our Hot Topics page.
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Frequently asked questions
Who won the Brazil election runoff?
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won with about 51.8% of the vote. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro took about 48.2%.
Has Flávio Bolsonaro accepted the result?
No. He says he will ask for the vote to be thrown out, citing the two-hour extension of voting. Lula’s campaign had asked for that extension after complaints about cuts to bus services.
When does Lula’s new term begin after the Brazil election?
The fourth term starts on January 5, 2027, and runs until the end of 2030.
