'Tropical Trump' Bolsonaro Trails Leftist Rival Lula In Brazil's Presidential Polls

Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s leader endorsed by former U.S. President Donald Trump, is trailing his left-wing rival Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the South American country’s presidential elections.

What Happened: Da Silva, popularly known as Lula, failed to secure enough votes for a definitive victory and will face Bolsonaro in a run-off election on Oct. 30, reported NPR.

The race between the two Brazillian leaders was close with Da Silva, a former president, winning nearly 47.9% after 97% of the votes were counted. Bolsonaro was trailing with 43.6%, according to the report.

Campaigning is now set to continue for the next four weeks, NPR reported.

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Why It Matters: Sunday’s elections were reportedly largely peaceful, but there have been instances of violence leading up to the polls.

Trump extended his support to Bolsonaro on Truth Social in early September. He said the leader is referred to affectionately as “Tropical Trump.”

The former U.S. president had said, “President Bolsonaro loves Brazil beyond all else. He is a wonderful man, and has my Complete and Total Endorsement!!”

On Sunday night, Trump said on Truth Social that Bolsonaro “greatly” outperformed “inaccurate Fake News Media polls” and got into a two-person runoff.

“Now that other Conservatives are out of the race, President Bolsonaro is in a very strong position to win BIG.” 

Screenshot From Donald Trump's Truth Social Account

Truth Social is a part of Trump Media & Technology Group, which is set to go public through a merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp. DWAC.

Opinion polls gave Da Silva the edge, with the last Datafolha survey, released Saturday, indicating a 50% to 36% advantage for the leftist leader, according to a separate NPR report

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