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BRASILIA (Reuters) – Candidates on Saturday began their last day of campaigning for Brazil's most polarized presidential race in decades, which could elect a former far-right army captain promising to fight corruption , to appease the firearms laws and to defend the values of the Christian family.
A supporter of Brazilian presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro is seen next to an inflatable doll, also known as Pixuleco, representing former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in front of the Bolsonaro condominium located in the district of Barra da Tijuca in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on October 5th. 2018. REUTERS / Sergio Moraes
The 55-year-old leader Jair Bolsonaro has faced widespread anger at rising crime, a drifting economy and the prospect of a return of the left-wing labor party to power.
His closest rival is Fernando Haddad of the Workers Party, whose leader is in prison for receiving bribes.
Saturday's final opinion polls will show whether Bolsonaro has enough support to win the election on Sunday. If no candidate obtains the majority, the race will be played in the second round between the first two winners of the vote on October 28th.
Bolsonaro, who is recovering from a murderous assault at a rally a month ago, has called on Brazilians to vote for him in a live Facebook broadcast for his home Friday night.
He asked them to give him the majority to avoid a second vote, which some polls showed a winner for his left-wing challenger.
Haddad's support is based on the popularity of his mentor, former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who was barred from running for corruption. Haddad will campaign Saturday in the state of Bahia, in northeastern Brazil, where Lula is still a hero because his government has contributed much to poverty reduction.
About 26 percent of voters say they have not yet decided who to vote for, according to a Datafolha poll released Thursday. It shows that the victory of Bolsonaro was still possible but unlikely.
"We will accept the result no matter what, there should be no doubt," Bolsonaro said.
The insurance was meant to calm fears that he was calling for a military coup if he lost. Bolsonaro, who is backed by a group of retired generals, said last week that he would only accept victory.
A Bolsonaro government would accelerate the privatization of state-owned enterprises to reduce Brazil's budget deficit and relax environmental controls for the agricultural and mining sectors. It would also block efforts to legalize abortion, drugs and gay marriage.
In an interview published Friday by the Estado newspaper of Sao Paulo, one of the main economic advisers of the candidate said that Mr. Bolsonaro would continue the privatization of the electricity company Centrais Eletricas Brasileiras SA, or Eletrobras.
However, former army general Oswaldo de Jesus Ferreira has pledged to keep the oil giant Petroleo Brasileiro SA, known as Petrobras, in the hands of the government.
The hydroelectric dam projects on the Tapajos River in the Amazon Basin, which were stopped due to environmental concerns, will be discussed again, said Ferreira.
But he added that the expansion of soybean, corn and sugar cane plantations would not be allowed in the Amazon region, where environmentalists say deforestation is on the rise again.
Reportage by Anthony Boadle; Edited by Darren Schuettler
