Brazil’s presidential race is heading to a runoff after Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro led President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Sunday’s first round. With 99.99% of voting machines counted early Monday, the Superior Electoral Court reported that Bolsonaro received 56.1 million votes, or 47.03% of valid ballots, while Lula received 53.9 million, or 45.16%.
The result leaves the two candidates separated by about 2.2 million votes, but neither reached the majority needed to win outright. The electoral court’s calendar sets the second round for Oct. 25, when voters will choose between the two candidates.
Bolsonaro, 45, is a senator representing Rio de Janeiro and is running for president for the first time. His running mate is federal lawmaker Alfredo Gaspar. Lula, 80, is seeking a fourth, nonconsecutive presidential term; his vice-presidential candidate is Geraldo Alckmin, a physician and former governor of São Paulo.
Turnout could shape the next round. The Associated Press reported that more than 33.4 million voters — 21.08% of the electorate — abstained in the first round, the country’s highest abstention rate in 28 years. Voting is mandatory in Brazil, though people who do not vote can justify their absence or face a small fine.
Lula’s Workers’ Party chairman, Edinho Silva, said the president would meet with campaign managers in Brasília to refine the campaign message, study regional turnout and shift resources toward key states. The AP also reported that the campaign expects televised debates to matter after both candidates avoided them in the first round.
Reuters reported that Lula’s campaign is changing its communications to reach voters who stayed home, with campaign figures identifying younger voters and women as groups the previous messaging did not reach well. The campaign is also courting more than 9 million voters who supported other candidates.
Bolsonaro is contacting political leaders, party officials and regional allies as he builds support. The AP reported that his Liberal Party will hold more than one-third of the Senate after Sunday’s legislative elections, giving the party significant influence in the next Congress.
Three of the other first-round candidates have said they will not endorse either finalist, according to the AP. Both campaigns now have until Oct. 25 to persuade undecided voters and people who abstained to return to the polls.