Brazil’s Lula and Bolsonaro debate policy proposals before run-off

Polls indicate Brazil’s presidential candidates are neck and neck before Sunday’s voting.

Presidential candidates Senator Flavio Bolsonaro and incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva appear before their debate on October 23, 2026, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil [Buda Mendes/Getty Images]

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his right-wing rival Flavio Bolsonaro have focused on policy proposals in the final debate before their presidential run-off .

The candidates questioned each other on Friday, two days before the election, about Brazil’s economy, infrastructure and regional development.

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Lula challenged his rival’s plan to take a “chainsaw” to public spending in a manner similar to that of Argentina’s libertarian president, Javier Milei.

“I’ll have the same job here [as Milei in Argentina] because you’re leaving the country bankrupt,” Bolsonaro responded.

Bolsonaro, son of former right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro , accused the incumbent of allowing organised crime to expand, driving families into debt and not addressing the higher cost of living.

“He doesn’t know what hunger is,” Brazil’s first working-class president said of Bolsonaro, who responded, “Why are things so expensive?”

Lula questioned the senator’s experience, saying, “He doesn’t know Brazil.”

His challenger doubled down on presenting himself as a capable candidate who represented change for the country.

Supporters of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva follow the televised debate between him and Flavio Bolsonaro before the run-off [Juan Barreto/AFP]

Friday’s debate in Rio de Janeiro, which was broadcast on TV Globo, was notably more diplomatic than their initial face-off on Sunday but also saw its share of personal attacks and tense moments.

Bolsonaro called Lula “Nine Fingers”, a pejorative nickname used by many of his supporters that references an accident the Brazilian president suffered during his time as a metalworker. The 80-year-old leader demanded an apology, which Bolsonaro gave him.

Lula in response called Bolsonaro a vigilante, referring to allegations that his rival has ties to paramilitary groups in Rio de Janeiro. Bolsonaro said he would classify those groups as “narcoterrorists”.

The third tense exchange was between Bolsonaro and the mother of a five-year-old who was killed in a shootout that involved a policeman who had the presidential candidate as his lawyer. Bolsonaro said he doesn’t believe his client was guilty.

Bolsonaro finished first in the initial round of voting on October 4 with 47 percent of the vote to Lula’s 45 percent.

A Datafolha institute survey published on Thursday suggested the pair are now tied with 50 percent support each, compared with Bolsonaro’s four-point lead in polls published two weeks ago.

Both candidates are expected to join supporters in the streets of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo in their last campaign effort before Sunday’s run-off.

民调显示，巴西总统候选人在周日投票前支持率不相上下。

总统候选人参议员弗拉维奥·博尔索纳罗和现任总统路易斯·伊纳西奥·卢拉·达席尔瓦于 2026 年 10 月 23 日在巴西里约热内卢举行辩论 [Buda Mendes/Getty Images]

巴西总统路易斯·伊纳西奥·卢拉·达席尔瓦和他的右翼对手弗拉维奥·博尔索纳罗在总统决选前的最后一场辩论中，重点讨论了政策提案。

周五，也就是选举前两天，候选人就巴西的经济、基础设施和区域发展问题互相提问。

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巴西总统博索纳罗向卢拉发出挑战，要求其扩大个人记录的公开范围（共3条，此为第2条）。

巴西即将迎来紧张的总统决选，以下是您需要了解的三件事（共三条）：

卢拉对他的对手提出的削减公共开支的计划提出了质疑，该计划与阿根廷自由主义总统哈维尔·米莱的做法类似，就像用“电锯”切割公共开支一样。

“我在这里（阿根廷）的工作和米莱一样，因为你们让国家破产了，”博索纳罗回应道。

前右翼总统雅伊尔·博索纳罗之子博索纳罗指责现任总统放任有组织犯罪扩张，导致家庭负债累累，并且没有解决生活成本上涨的问题。

“他不知道饥饿是什么滋味，”巴西首位工人阶级出身的总统这样评价博索纳罗，博索纳罗则回应道：“为什么东西这么贵？”

卢拉质疑这位参议员的经验，说：“他不了解巴西。”

他的挑战者加倍努力，把自己塑造成一位能够为国家带来变革的优秀候选人。

总统路易斯·伊纳西奥·卢拉·达席尔瓦的支持者在决选前关注他和弗拉维奥·博尔索纳罗之间的电视辩论 [胡安·巴雷托/法新社]

周五在里约热内卢举行的辩论由环球电视台播出，与周日的首次交锋相比，辩论明显更具外交辞令，但也出现了一些人身攻击和紧张时刻。

博索纳罗称卢拉为“九指”，这是他的许多支持者用来贬义地称呼卢拉的绰号，源于这位巴西总统在担任金属工人时遭遇的一次事故。这位80岁的老人要求博索纳罗道歉，博索纳罗也向他道歉了。

卢拉回应称博索纳罗是“私刑者”，指的是有指控称他的对手与里约热内卢的准军事组织有联系。博索纳罗则表示，他会将这些组织归类为“毒品恐怖分子”。

第三次紧张的交锋发生在博索纳罗和一位五岁男孩的母亲之间。这名男孩在一场枪战中丧生，枪战中涉及的警察正是博索纳罗的律师。博索纳罗表示，他不相信他的当事人有罪。

在10月4日的第一轮投票中，博索纳罗以47%的得票率位居第一，卢拉的得票率为45%。

Datafolha 研究所周四公布的一项调查显示，两人目前支持率均为 50%，不分伯仲，而两周前公布的民调显示博索纳罗领先 4 个百分点。

预计两位候选人都将在周日决选前的最后一次竞选活动中，与支持者一起走上里约热内卢和圣保罗的街头。