Brazil election: Bolsonaro, Lula trade jabs in first TV debate ahead of run-off

Brazil's leftist presidential contender Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro traded jabs and insults as they squared off in their first head-to-head television debate on Sunday night ahead of the country's presidential runoff election.

Lula, the veteran leftist, branded his election rival as a "tiny little dictator" and "the king of fake news and stupidity" as the two seasoned campaigners sparred in the first debate for their high-voltage second-round showdown on October 30.

The charismatic former president, who is seeking a comeback at 76, criticized Bolsonaro over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic by calling him a "shameless liar" who "fooled around" with the virus causing huge fatalities.

“Your negligence led to 680,000 people dying, when more than half could have been saved,” he told the incumbent president, attacking him for his resistance to buying vaccines and embrace of unproven medications such as hydroxychloroquine.

Lula also slammed Bolsonaro's widely criticized environmental policies and lack of respect for the Amazon.

“You showed no respect for the Amazon – none at all,” Lula said. “We are going to win these elections so we can take care of the Amazon and outlaw the invasion of Indigenous lands and illegal mining.”

Bolsonaro, 67, for his part, sought to shift the focus to corruption charges against Lula, calling him a "national embarrassment" in a two-hour televised debate.

"Your past is disgraceful... You did nothing for Brazil but stuff public money in your pockets and those of your friends," Bolsonaro hit back at Lula.

Lula, Bolsonaro head to runoff after tight Brazil election

Brazil

In 2018, Lula was jailed on controversial, since-overturned charges stemming from the investigation of a massive graft scheme centered on state-run oil company Petrobras.

“My opponent is basically the most shameless liar that exists,” Lula said. “I’m the one who defends democracy and freedom – much more than this tiny little dictator … I want to govern this country democratically as I have twice before,” said the former union leader, who governed from 2003 to 2010.

Both presidential candidates have substantially ramped up their rhetoric, unleashing acerbic personal attacks in TV commercials.

"Policy proposals have lost their central role, and accusations have taken their place," political scientist Christopher Mendonca was quoted as saying by AFP.

Neither candidate detailed in the debate how they would raise the money to extend a more generous welfare programme, which both have promised to do without breaking federal budget rules.

While most polls had predicted that Bolsonaro, a conservative hardliner who took office in 2019, would receive no more than 37 percent of the votes, the incumbent president managed to secure 43 percent of votes to Lula’s 48 percent in October 2 election.

Bolsonaro’s better-than-expected performance in the first round means that the runoff on October 30 is likely to be a tight contest.

Lula has 53 percent of the vote heading into the runoff, to 47 percent for Bolsonaro, according to a poll released Friday by the Datafolha institute.

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