Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – October 23: Liberal Party presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro and Brazil’s incumbent president and Partido dos Traballadores (PT) presidential candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva pose for a cameraman before a debate ahead of Brazil’s presidential runoff election on TV Globo on October 23, 2026 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo by Buda Mendez/Getty Images)
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Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro wrapped up their campaigning on Saturday, mobilizing supporters and making a final push to undecided voters ahead of Sunday’s presidential runoff.
The two candidates remain neck and neck in the polls after the right-wing senator performed better than expected in the first round. Saturday’s CNT/MDA poll had the senator leading by 1.3 points.
Mr Lula, who is seeking a fourth non-consecutive term, began the final day of the campaign with a march along Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Copacabana Beach, where thousands of supporters joined the leftist incumbent under a scorching sun.
“We’re going to win elections for a simple reason: It’s true that the people want change, (but) we want to move forward. We don’t want to go back,” Lula told reporters before the rally.
SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – OCTOBER 24: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Brazil’s incumbent president and Partido dos Trabaladores (PT) presidential candidate, greets supporters during a rally ahead of the presidential run-off elections on Paulista Avenue in São Paulo, Brazil, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by: Alexandre Schneider/Getty Images)
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The president then led another march in São Paulo, passing through Paulista Avenue, the traditional venue for political demonstrations in Brazil’s largest city.
“I’m very excited to see everyone here. This is the energy we want in Brazil. Brazil is ours,” said Gisele Passos, a 61-year-old businesswoman who attended the São Paulo rally.
For many Lula supporters, the rally had a bittersweet feel. The 80-year-old president and former trade union leader is widely expected to make his final bid for election, with the campaign-closing event having the feel of a farewell tour.
“He is a unique person. He has had an incredible and hard-fought journey, and we are very proud of that,” said Olga Real, a 62-year-old retiree from São Paulo.
Bolsonaro rallies in battleground states
Meanwhile, President Bolsonaro joined a motorcycle caravan in Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais, a key battleground state. Since Minas Gerais returned to democracy in the 1980s, no candidate has been elected president without representing Minas Gerais.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – OCTOBER 24: In this popular view, Liberal Party (PL) presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro joins from the soundtrack of a rally ahead of the presidential run-off elections to be held in Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on October 24, 2026. (Photo by Lucas Figueiredo/Getty Images)
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The senator led Lula by about 5 points in the state in the first round.
“The time is drawing near. We only have a few hours left to shape the future of our country for the next 30 or 40 years,” the lawmaker, the eldest son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, said in a video on social media.
He then participated in a campaign march in his home state of Rio de Janeiro, where he has been a senator since 2019.
The young Bolsonaro first ran for president in December last year with the support of his father. The former president was sentenced to more than 27 years in prison for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 presidential election to Lula.
On Friday, Lula and Bolsonaro held their final debate on TV Globo, the country’s main free-to-air TV channel, where they sparred over living expenses and traded personal attacks.
