Right-Wing Candidate Poised to Win Presidential Election

Brasilia: Far-right congressman Jair Bolsonaro who won the first round of Brazil’s presidential election held earlier this month, was poised to win the second round of polls slated to take place on Sunday. Bolsonaro was leading in recent polls ahead of Fernando Haddad, a leftist former Sao Paulo mayor, with 56 per cent of voters likely to vote for Bolsonaro, while 44 per cent supported Haddad. Bolsonaro, 63, won the first round of the elections held on October 7 amid a field of 13 candidates. But he fell short of the 50 per cent needed to win outright and avoid a runoff against Haddad, from the Workers’ Party.

Throughout the campaign, dozens of politically motivated acts of violence were registered by voters, journalist and politicians. Bolsonaro was stabbed in the stomach last month during a rally in the city of Juiz de Fora, in Minas Gerais state. Bolsonaro, who has been compared to US President Donald Trump and Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, has stirred controversy by making misogynistic, racist and homophobic remarks, CNN said. (IANS)