Brazilians are heading to the polls on Sunday in an election which could see one of the world’s most populous democracies switch from a far-right to a left-wing leader.
Voting is compulsory for the more than 156 million Brazilians eligible.
Incumbent Jair Bolsonaro is seeking a second term after four years in power but is being challenged by ex-President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
A result is expected within hours after polls close at 17:00 (20:00 GMT).
On the right is current President Jair Bolsonaro, a brash nationalist widely criticized for escalating destruction of the Amazon, bungling Brazil’s COVID-19 response and casting doubts on the country’s electoral system in the run-up to election day.
Eleven presidential candidates are on the ballot, but all eyes are on Bolsonaro and da Silva. While Bolsonaro’s numbers were rising recently, most polls show him stuck in the low 30th percentile of voter preference. Many Brazilians are unhappy with the 67-year-old incumbent’s governing. A survey in mid-September by Datafolha showed 44% of those polled said they disapprove of the job the president is doing.
The President and Vice President of Brazil are elected as a joint ticket using the two-round system. The first round of elections is held on the first Sunday of October (in this instance, 2 October 2022). A candidate who receives more than 50% of the total valid votes in the first round is elected. If the 50% threshold is not met by any candidate, the two candidates who receive the most votes in the first round participate in a second round of voting, held on the last Sunday of October (in this instance, 30 October 2022), and the candidate who receives the most votes in the second round is elected.
The Governors and Vice Governors of all states and of the Federal District will also be elected in 2022, in two rounds if needed, in the same way as the presidential election.
One-third of the 81 members of the Federal Senate will be elected in 2022, the other two-thirds having been elected in 2018. One candidate will be elected from each of the states and the Federal District using plurality voting.
All 513 members of the Chamber of Deputies (Federal Deputies) will be elected in 2022, with candidates elected from 27 multi-member constituencies corresponding to the states and the Federal District, varying in size from 8 to 70 seats. All members of the State Legislative Assemblies (State Deputies) and of the Federal District Legislative Chamber (District Deputies), varying in size from 24 to 94 seats, will also be elected. These elections are held using open list proportional representation, with seats allocated using integer quotients and the D’Hondt method.