A right-wing Brazilian congressman dubbed by some media outlets as the “Trump of the Tropics” advanced on Sunday to a runoff presidential election, nearly securing enough votes for an outright victory.
Yahoo News reported that Jair Bolsonaro won 46.7 percent of the vote in the first round, while his nearest challenger, former Sao Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad, earned 28.4 percent. The two men will face off on Oct. 28.
Bolsonaro complained Sunday that “polling problems” cost him an outright victory, according to Yahoo News, though he did not formally protest the result.
{mosads}The New York Times reported that left-leaning candidates have won the presidency in Brazil in each election dating back to 2002. However, Bolsonaro has established himself as a right-wing alternative who has vowed to stamp out corruption and reverse the country’s course.
He has reportedly advocated for restoring “traditional” Brazilian values, a term some in the country have taken to mean he supports returning to practices of a dictatorship. He has also made derisive comments about women as well as black and gay people, according to media reports.
The New York Times reported that Bolsonaro’s candidacy has caused alarm among critics and left-leaning politicians who expressed concern that if victorious, he could emerge as an authoritarian leader similar to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey and Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines.