Stabbed leader leads Brazil poll

Brasilia – Far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro gained ground over his rivals in the first round of Brazil’s presidential election set for October 7, a new poll showed yesterday, though it remains unclear who he will face in an expected runoff vote later.

Bolsonaro, who is recovering in hospital from a near-fatal stabbing two weeks ago, is backed by 28% of the voters surveyed by polling firm Datafolha, a gain of two points since a poll a week ago.

The Workers Party’s candidate, Fernando Haddad, surged into second place with 16%, a 3 percentage point rise, but he is statistically tied with Ciro Gomes, a centre-left populist.

Datafolha surveyed 8 601 voters across Brazil. The poll, published by the newspaper Folha de S Paulo, has a margin of error of 2 percentage points.

Haddad replaced jailed former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the ticket nine days ago.

Gomes’ support remained at 13%, according to Datafolha.

With no candidate projected to win a majority in the first ballot, the two best-performing hopefuls will meet in a runoff.

Gomes is the only candidate projected to beat Bolsonaro in a second-round vote, according to the poll.

Gomes would defeat Bolsonaro with 45% of the votes, Datafolha said.