Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro trade personal attacks in final runoff debate

Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro met in Brasilia for the final televised debate before Sunday's presidential runoff. The two traded personal attacks, repeatedly accused each other of lying and often turned set-piece policy exchanges into clashes over character. Crime, corruption and health care were on the agenda, but the event was dominated by direct attacks.

Lula, who is 80 and seeking a fourth term, said Flavio was worse than his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro. Jair Bolsonaro is serving a sentence for plotting a coup after losing the last election, and Flavio has promised to free him. Flavio finished two points ahead of Lula in the first round of voting, an unexpected result that left the runoff tightly balanced.

Fabio de Sa e Silva, an associate professor at the University of Oklahoma, said it was the worst debate he had seen in his life. He argued that viewers did not get a meaningful discussion of policy. He said Lula was not well prepared and missed chances under the debate rules, but still won on points. He described Flavio as aggressive and dismissive, said he made a series of false claims and argued that the senator echoed his father's personality rather than appearing ready to be president.

Polling cited in the coverage pointed to a close and fluid race. One survey after an earlier debate showed undecided voters doubling from 7% to 14%. Lula's campaign has tried to reverse the first-round result, and his supporters have taken to the streets. His backers credit welfare programmes with lifting millions out of poverty. Flavio's supporters, including prominent evangelical pastor Silas Malafaia, see him as a vehicle for conservative values and for ending left-wing rule. Flavio was also due to close his campaign in Rio de Janeiro later that evening.

The race has exposed a changing working class. Osasco, a former industrial town that voted for Lula in 2022, has seen factories close and the gig economy grow. This month it switched to Flavio, and some workers, such as a hot dog seller, said they wanted lower taxes and flexible hours rather than welfare. Among the poorest voters, Lula retains strong support. An 18-year-old mother in Rio de Janeiro said his financial support had been a dream come true for families like hers.

Richard Lapper, a former associate at Chatham House, said Flavio's first-round win was unexpected but Lula had narrowed the gap from five points to one point. He said Lula had improved his social media campaign sharply, acquiring a mobile phone for the first time and building an online following of 8 million people in two weeks. If Flavio wins, Lapper said the Bolsonaro clan's ties to the Trump administration could push Brazil away from the BRICS group and towards the United States. But China is Brazil's biggest trading partner, absorbing 30% of exports for nearly 20 years, so any shift would probably be mainly rhetorical.