Brazil Election Live: Lula wins by a sniff while Flávio Bolsonaro comes very close

Brazil's electoral court has confirmed Lula's win, France 24 reported. He took 51.7 per cent to Flávio Bolsonaro's 48.2 per cent in a result that defied the polls and precedent.

The result was greeted with anger and bewilderment in Brasília, where Flávio watched the count and his father Jair Bolsonaro is under house arrest, The Guardian reported. Flávio has not yet publicly conceded.

In São Paulo, lawmaker Erika Hilton, who was with Lula during the count, called him "a statesman, a giant", Reuters reported. Former foreign minister Celso Amorim said Lula "would be very important for establishing a point of balance in Latin America". The win halts a run of right-wing victories across the region and denies US President Donald Trump another friendly government there.

Lula, who turns 81 on Tuesday, begins his fourth term on 1 January 2027.

With 99.9 per cent of polling stations counted, Lula has 51.77 per cent to Flávio Bolsonaro's 48.23 per cent, a margin of about 43.8 lakh votes, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

Pollster Datafolha projected Lula's re-election to an unprecedented fourth term at 8:46pm Brasília time (5:16am IST), Folha de S.Paulo reported.

The result has consequences beyond the presidency. It rules out a presidential pardon for Jair Bolsonaro, Flávio's father, who is serving a 27-year sentence for the 2022 coup attempt, Folha noted.

Neither Lula nor Flávio Bolsonaro has spoken publicly yet.

Lula has won a fourth term as Brazil's president. With 99.75 per cent of polling stations counted, he had 51.75 per cent to Flávio Bolsonaro's 48.25 per cent, a lead of about 43.4 lakh votes that the remaining 0.25 per cent of stations cannot overturn, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) count.

It is a historic comeback. Flávio Bolsonaro topped the first round three weeks ago by 22 lakh votes, and no candidate had ever won Brazil's presidency after finishing second in the first round.

Neither candidate has spoken yet. We will bring you their reactions as they come.

Lula is closing in on victory. With 87 per cent of polling stations counted, he had 51.47 per cent to Flávio Bolsonaro's 48.53 per cent, a lead of about 31.6 lakh votes, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

That would make him the first candidate in Brazil's history to win the presidency after finishing second in the first round. The TSE has not yet declared a winner, and neither candidate has spoken.

More than two-thirds of the vote is in, and Lula is pulling ahead. With 68.2 per cent of polling stations counted, he had 50.88 per cent to Flávio Bolsonaro's 49.12 per cent, a lead of about 14.7 lakh votes, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

His margin has grown more than twentyfold in 15 minutes, from about 65,000 votes at the halfway mark. Neither candidate has spoken yet, and the TSE has not called the race.

Lula has retaken the lead. With 49 per cent of polling stations counted, he had 50.05 per cent to Flávio Bolsonaro's 49.95 per cent, a margin of about 65,000 votes out of more than 6 crore, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

Flávio had led by about 3.3 lakh votes at the one-third mark, so the race has swung back within half an hour. Lula is following the results in São Paulo and Bolsonaro in Brasília, the BBC reported.

With nearly a third of polling stations counted, Flávio Bolsonaro is holding his lead. At 31.2 per cent counted, he had 50.43 per cent to Lula's 49.57 per cent, a margin of about 3.3 lakh votes, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

History is on his side: no candidate has ever won Brazil's presidency after finishing second in the first round, Reuters noted. Flávio topped the first round three weeks ago with 47 per cent to Lula's 45 per cent.

Polls closed at 7pm Brasília time (3:30am IST) and counting has resumed. The lead is changing hands.

With 12.9 per cent of polling stations counted, Lula led with 50.20 per cent. By 15.4 per cent counted, Flávio Bolsonaro had moved ahead with 50.10 per cent to Lula's 49.90 per cent, a gap of about 37,000 votes out of more than 1.9 crore counted, according to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE).

The live results counter at the top of this page updates from the TSE every few seconds.

The electoral authority paused its count after the extension, Reuters reported. It had already begun publishing results, which showed Lula on 57.66 per cent and Bolsonaro on 42.34 per cent with just 0.25 per cent of ballots counted.

Figures that early say little about the final outcome. Counting is expected to resume once polls close at 7pm Brasília time (3:30am IST).

Brazil's Supreme Court has extended voting nationwide by two hours. Polls were due to close at 5pm Brasília time (1:30am IST on Monday) and will now close at 7pm (3:30am IST).

Justice Cristiano Zanin granted a request from Lula's campaign, which pointed to public transport failures in three cities in Bahia state, Reuters reported. Lula said 40 per cent of buses had been pulled from service in São Paulo, according to AFP.

Flávio Bolsonaro also sought an extension, citing heavy rain in Brazil's south and south-east, where much of his support lies, AFP said. The BBC reported the extension applies only to areas where voting had not already been finalised.

Brazil is voting in a presidential run-off between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of the Workers' Party and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro of the Liberal Party, the 45-year-old son of jailed former president Jair Bolsonaro.

Flávio Bolsonaro surprised the left by topping the first round three weeks ago, and final polls showed the two neck and neck, AFP reported. Nearly 160 million Brazilians are eligible to vote, according to Al Jazeera.