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Bolsonaro and Lula clash over prison vote in Brazil
During the first face-off of the election campaign in Brazil, former president Jair Bolsonaro claimed that 73% of inmates voted for Lula in the first round, according to a post by EL PAÍS América on its Instagram account on October 18, 2026.
During the first face-off of the election campaign in Brazil, former president Jair Bolsonaro claimed that 73% of inmates voted for Lula in the first round, according to a post by EL PAÍS América on its Instagram account on October 18, 2026. However, this figure is misleading because of the way electoral districts are structured in the South American country.
The percentage cited does not exclusively reflect the will of people deprived of their liberty. In practice, the number corresponds to the electoral sections where the prisons are located, but the voter rolls for those facilities also include citizens who live in the surrounding areas and are not incarcerated.
In response to the claim, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva responded directly during the debate, saying he aspires to win the support of 100% of inmates. Disputes over sensitive data in the penitentiary sphere like this tend to intensify in the decisive phases of Brazilian political contests, where security and the prison system occupy a central place in public debate.