Brazil's First Round Sees Highest Abstention Since 1998

Overview

• The first round, held Sunday, Oct. 4, put Flávio Bolsonaro and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva into a runoff on Oct. 25 after Bolsonaro took about 47.18% and Lula about 44.98% of valid votes.
• Official tallies from the TSE show 21.08% abstention (more than 33 million people) and combined abstentions with blank and null ballots at roughly 24.6%, about 39.1 million citizens who did not cast a valid presidential vote.
• At the same time the contest produced a record number of valid first‑round votes — about 119.3 million — meaning most who voted chose a candidate even as overall non‑participation rose.
• Analysts point to voter disengagement, intense polarization and practical barriers such as distance, transport costs and mobility limits as causes, and TSE President Kassio Nunes Marques said the court will intensify measures like targeted transport programs to lower absenteeism for the second round.
• Abstention has climbed steadily since 2002 and varied by state — Mato Grosso do Sul recorded the highest rate while Ceará was the lowest — so the second‑round outcome will hinge on which campaigns better mobilize older, low‑income and hard‑to‑reach voters and on local turnout efforts.