The outcome of the poll will determine whether the world’s fourth-largest democracy continues on its current path of far-right politics or elects a leftist leader.
Brazilians are voting in a presidential runoff between an incumbent who pledges to protect traditional Christian values and a former president who pledges to return the country to its affluent past.
Both candidates in the runoff, President Jair Bolsonaro, and former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, are well-known polarising political figures.
The outcome of the poll will determine whether the world’s fourth-largest democracy continues on its current path of far-right politics or elects a leftist leader.
More than 120 million Brazilians are anticipated to vote, but because the vote is performed electronically, the final result is typically available within hours after the polls shut.
Most surveys gave Mr. da Silva, universally known as Lula, the advantage, but political analysts agreed that the contest has become increasingly close in recent weeks.
For months, it appeared that da Silva would win with relative ease.
However, in the first-round elections held on 2 October, Mr. da Silva finished first with 48% of the vote, followed by Mr. Bolsonaro with 43%.
The contenders made little recommendations for the future of the country, other than a pledge to continue a large charity program for the needy.
They screamed at one another and started online smear campaigns, with Bolsonaro’s group launching significantly more attacks.
He asserted without evidence that Mr. da Silva’s return to power would usher in communism, drug legalization, church persecution, and abortion.
However, Mr. Da Silva focused on Bolsonaro’s widely criticized response to the COVID-19 outbreak and asserted that the president failed to care for the most vulnerable segments of society.
There are also concerns that, should he lose, Mr. Bolsonaro may contest the election results, similar to former U.S. President Donald Trump.
He maintained for months that the nation’s electronic voting machines are susceptible to fraud, but never provided evidence.
