Polls close in Brazil as Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro remain neck and neck

After voters queued in long lines for a tight first round of the presidential race, polls have closed in Brazil's general election.

Key points

• While Bolsonaro came in second with 31.33%, in China, Lula won 56.63% of the votes.
• According to Brazil's Superior Electoral Court (TSE), more than 158.7 million Brazilians, including one million individuals abroad, are eligible to vote in the election.
• After casting his ballot, 80-year-old left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva cautioned that the choice was between democracy and "barbarism".
• Although BBC Brazil's poll aggregator demonstrates that candidates other than Lula and Bolsonaro will secure only regarding 10% of the vote, lula is challenged by 11 candidates.
• At present, the largest bloc in the Senate is Bolsonaro's Liberal Party (PL), followed by the Social Democratic Party (PSD).

His challenger, right-winger Flávio Bolsonaro, 45, remarked he wanted to "free the Brazilian people".

Meanwhile, the result is forecast to be close. BBC Brazil's poll aggregator demonstrates that the gap between Lula and Bolsonaro is only two points. If no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote, the election will go to a run-off on 25 October.

Notably, the TSE has not set a fixed time for the release of the official results, but they are projected within hours as voting is electronic and experience from previous elections demonstrates that results tend to come swiftly.

Notably, a victory for Bolsonaro would extend a wave of wins throughout Latin America by right-wing candidates aligned with US President Donald Trump, while Lula's re-election would create difficulties for Washington. It has clashed with his administration over trade and security.

Some countries, from which Brazilians living overseas are able to vote, have already published preliminary vote count data.

While Bolsonaro came in second with 31.33%, in China, Lula won 56.63% of the votes. Lula additionally won in countries including South Korea, New Zealand and Saudi Arabia.

In Israel, nevertheless, Bolsonaro won 74.40% of the valid votes. He additionally won 71.59% of the valid votes in Japan.

As 54 of the Senate's 81 seats are being contested, representing two-thirds of the chamber, today's result will additionally determine the composition of the Senate from February 2027 onwards.

At present, the largest bloc in the Senate is Bolsonaro's Liberal Party (PL), followed by the Social Democratic Party (PSD). It has served in a coalition administration under Lula.

In the last election four years ago, Lula narrowly defeated Flávio Bolsonaro's father, Jair. But the tumultuous aftermath of the election. It saw Jair Bolsonaro convicted of plotting a coup after thousands of his supporters stormed the Brazilian Congress, has had a lasting impact on the nation's political life and this election.

Jair Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup and is barred from standing for office.

Since of recurrent health difficulties, he is at present under house arrest rather than in a cell, but he has been prohibited from posting on social media or making public statements.

Despite these restrictions, there is little doubt that Flávio Bolsonaro has his father's backing.

For now, polls close in Brazil as Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro remain neck and remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.