RIO DE JANEIRO, October 26, 2026 (WAFA) — Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has been declared the winner of Sunday’s presidential runoff by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), defeating Flávio Bolsonaro in a tightly contested election to secure a fourth nonconsecutive term in office.
With nearly all polling stations counted, Lula garnered 51.76% of the valid votes, compared with Bolsonaro’s 48.24%, giving him a lead of more than four million votes, according to the TSE.
Bolsonaro had taken the lead in the first round of voting on October 4, winning 47.03% of valid ballots against Lula’s 45.16%. The results set the stage for three weeks of intense campaigning across Latin America’s largest country ahead of the decisive runoff.
Lula previously served as president from 2003 to 2010 before returning to office following his victory in 2022. He is scheduled to begin his fourth nonconsecutive term on January 5, 2027.
K.T
