The right-wing senator finished the first round with 47.03% of valid votes to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s 45.16%, with the count complete. Neither secured the majority required to win outright, sending them to an Oct. 25 runoff. Bolsonaro is campaigning on tighter spending, privatizations and lower taxes.
The gains followed strong results for other market-friendly candidates in races for governors, Congress and the Senate. Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party won the largest congressional bloc, while ally Tarcísio de Freitas was reelected governor of São Paulo with about 63% of the vote.