In Brazil’s most polarizing election in decades, women have long held the decisive swing vote, with a quarter of the female electorate up for grabs just a month ago — twice the undecided rate among Brazilian men.
Days ahead of Sunday’s deciding vote, however, right-wing front-runner Jair Bolsonaro has pushed them off the fence, splitting Brazilian women along deep fault lines.
. Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Reuters/Sergio Moraes
Photographer Marina Alves, 32, who is against Bolsonaro, said: “I want and hope that the next president guarantees the right to life, freedom, democracy! That means, #Bolsonaro no! #Bolsonaro never! Our president should be someone who respects the fundamental human rights we’ve won through political struggle and art!”
On one side, he has won the backing of women fed up with crime, corruption scandals and economic recession under the leftist Workers Party, represented by his rival Fernando Haddad.
On the other, women say they cannot bring themselves to vote for a man with a track record of offending minorities and women, including telling a fellow lawmaker she was too ugly to rape and defending the gender pay gap.
The latest survey from pollster Ibope shows a close divide, with 44 percent of women supporting Bolsonaro and 40 percent for Haddad. Men have broken overwhelmingly for Bolsonaro, who has the support of 56 percent, against just 36 percent for Haddad.
The largest demonstrations against Bolsonaro in recent months have been led by women, gathering tens of thousands of protesters under the slogan “ele nao” or “not him.”
. Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Reuters/Pilar Olivares
Community health nurse Larissa Lombardi, 46, supporter of Bolsonaro, said: I lived in Venezuela for 12 years. I don’t want my daughter to grow up in a country without good administration,” Lombardi said. “I’m ashamed of what Lula did, I’m not going to vote for a man who is in jail. Bolsonaro, because of his military educational training, will rescue the values that the army teaches – family, the nation and God.”
Yet their campaign on social media and in the streets of major cities spurred a backlash from Bolsonaro supporters declaring “ele sim” or “yes, him.”
Many women shrug off the feminist arguments against the seven-term congressman, arguing that crime and political graft have gotten so bad that his promises on those fronts come first.
. Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Reuters/Pilar Olivares
Rose Nascimento.
“I am really worried about violence. I have nine children and I am a grandmother. It’s hard to think what kind of life they’ll have in this unsafe city,” said Rose Nascimento, a 50-year-old businesswoman in Rio de Janeiro.
“I hope Bolsonaro will do something about it,” she said, adding that the lawmaker is “a man that respects family values.”
. Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Reuters/Sergio Moraes
Mohara Valle.
Yet Mohara Valle, an activist on behalf of black women, said she was worried about minority rights under Bolsonaro.
“We don’t want to go backward,” said Valle, 28. “We have to keep fighting for more policies to let us not only live, but live well with full rights to our own bodies.”
. Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Reuters/Sergio Moraes
Maira Fernandes.
Maira Fernandes, a 36-year-old attorney, pointed to comments by Bolsonaro’s vice presidential candidate, retired General Hamilton Mourao, who described homes run by women as “factories for misfits.”
“Nothing would be worse for women than a victory for Bolsonaro and Mourao,” said Fernandes. She added that Haddad’s choice of running mate, feminist Manuela D’Avila, gave her confidence that they would combat violence against women.
. Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL. Reuters/Pilar Olivares
Sandra Nicacio,
Still, for women such as Sandra Nicacio, a 54-year-old lawyer, Bolsonaro’s tough talk on crime is more assuring, such as a proposal to chemically castrate convicted rapists.
Bolsonaro’s praise for the country’s 1964-1985 military government also inspires hope for Brazilians who long for a time when violence was less widespread.
“My memories during the military dictatorship are that I had a good education and nothing was missing,” Nicacio said. “What I am now professionally, I owe to the dictatorship.”
