San Francisco Frontiers - Lula, Bolsonaro in final push for votes ahead of knife-edge election

The 80-year-old veteran leftist is seeking a fourth and final term in office, warning voters that Brazil's sovereignty is at stake in the face of pressure from US President Donald Trump.

Lula is locked in a tight battle against right-wing senator Flavio Bolsonaro, 45, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, a close ally of Trump who is serving a 27-year sentence for attempting a coup after his failed 2022 re-election bid.

Opinion polls show neither candidate is likely to win in the first-round election Sunday, and the two are in a statistical tie for an October 25 runoff.

After criss-crossing the vast nation in recent weeks, the two men are making a final push for votes in the key southeastern battlegrounds of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

Lula will hold his final rally in the megacity Sao Paulo, where supporters were decked out in the red of his Workers' Party, wearing caps and T-shirts declaring: "Make Lula President Again" or "Brazil belongs to Brazilians."

Adriana Lima, 44, an early childhood educator clad all in red, told AFP that Lula was "the only president who cared about the people."

"We also have an issue with Trump wanting to treat Brazil like their backyard, so we absolutely cannot let that happen. It's a very important election."

Another Lula supporter, accountant Tiago Lorureto, 35, said the election was "a choice between democracy and barbarism."

- 'Never any money' -

Flavio Bolsonaro was taking part in a motorcycle rally about 400km away in Sao Paulo state.

If he wins the election, Brazil will join a growing number of Latin American nations that have swung to the right in recent months.

His rallies have featured massive US flags and giant inflatable balloons of Trump, who has not endorsed the senator, but has said he is "very closely" watching the election.

The younger Bolsonaro has run on a platform of hardline security policies and fiscal austerity, slamming Lula as "incompetent" and highlighting the high cost of living.

Marcelo Peressim, 50, who owns a packaging company, came out to Flavio Bolsonaro's rally with a portrait of the candidate's father.

"We work almost 24 hours a day to have a good life and provide a good life for our families... yet there's never any money left over for us to do anything," he said.

Homemaker Eliane Boscolo, 47, said Trump would not need to take an interest in Brazil's elections "if the country were doing well."

"We need things to improve here. If his intervention is necessary, I'm all for it," she added.

- Scandals and insults -

While the presidential election is in the spotlight, Brazil's nearly 160 million registered voters are also electing lawmakers, governors, and some senators.

It has been a bitter campaign in the deeply divided nation. Policies and promises have been overshadowed by a barrage of scandals and personal attacks as candidates jockey for every undecided voter.

It emerged during the campaign that Flavio Bolsonaro was under investigation for corruption over the financing of the biopic "Dark Horse" about his father, bankrolled by jailed banker Daniel Vorcaro.

Vorcaro is under investigation in one of the country's biggest financial scandals that has ensnared many in power.

The scandal also led to a public feud in the Supreme Court, where some justices have been linked to Vorcaro.

A massive online campaign by both sides saw rivals seize on every gaffe, accusation and rumor, quickly turning them into slick videos or AI-generated images on social media.

The day before the election, Patricia Catherina de Sousa, 35, an elderly care companion in Rio de Janeiro, told AFP she was still trying to decide which candidate would get her vote.

"It's a really hard decision to make because it involves our country, our future, you know?"

Q.Nelson--SFF