Key Points
- Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has been stepping up his campaigns in the final weeks of the presidential election.
- He has noticeably been using local slang and memes to curry favour with voters in the northeast of the country.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his competitor Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, commonly known as Lula, have been stepping up their campaigns in the final stretch of the country's presidential election.
The incumbent president has noticeably been using local slang and memes to attract voters in the northeast of the country, where he is not as popular.
The president lost the first round of the election earlier this month, which he blamed on illiteracy in the region.
"Lula won in nine of the 10 states with the highest illiteracy rates. Know where those states are? In the northeast," he said at the time.
Now he is shouting "Ihu", a popular chant from the northeastern state of Ceará, as well as referencing "bora Bill", which is a viral meme originating from the state.
Race to the polls
The incumbent president needs to gain 6 million additional votes to win the second round of the election, while Lula needs 1.2 million to get elected in what would be a third term for the former president, who served from 2003-2010.
He and Lula faced off in the first televised presidential debate on Sunday night, just two weeks before the run-off election on 30 October.
Lula said he was confident he will win the election after the debate, given his performance and polling in his favour.
"I think I will win many votes after today's debate. I am convinced that we will win many votes because I said what needed to be said to the people," he said.
President Bolsonaro needs to gain 6 million additional votes to win re-election, while Lula needs 1.2 million to get elected in what would be a third term for the former president who served from 2003-2010.
According to a survey by pollster IPEC published on Monday 17 October, Brazilian presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva saw his lead over incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro slightly drop ahead of the 30 October runoff vote.
Lula's voter support has reached 50 per cent against 43 per cent for Mr Bolsonaro, compared with 51 per cent and 42 per cent, respectively in the previous poll.
