Could a Far-Right Politician Be Brazil's Next President? | NYT News

This is Jair Bolsonaro, the far-right candidate

that may become Brazil's next president.

He's been compared to President Trump

and Filipino president Rodrigo Duterte

for his highly controversial statements,

including his embrace of the military dictatorship

that ruled Brazil for 20 years.

Bolsonaro is a retired military captain

who has been in Congress since 1991.

He's been in the fringe far right

for most of his political career,

making headlines more for his outrageous statements

than for any political achievements.

In one infamous episode in 2003,

he had an argument with a fellow congresswoman

who accused him of promoting violence.

Over the years, he's had a long list

of other divisive remarks.

Last year, as he was toying with a presidential run,

he managed to take aim at several groups

in one statement alone.

Despite the incendiary comments,

Bolsonaro's popularity has grown in recent years.

He's vowed to crack down on crime,

a message that is resonating with many Brazilians.

Bolsonaro wants to make it easier to own guns

and has said he'd give police permission to kill suspects.

But most of all, he represents extreme opposition

to the leftist Workers' Party,

of former President Lula, who's now in jail

serving a 12-year sentence on corruption charges.

Bolsonaro's Workers' Party rival in the election is

Fernando Haddad, a former mayor of São Paulo

and minister under Lula.

Bolsonaro uses voters' distrust in the Workers' Party to his favor

and relies heavily on social media to spread his message.

In September, he was stabbed during a rally

and spent three weeks in a hospital.

He continued to campaign through live videos on Facebook.

But his past statements continue to spark anger.

Women across the country

have rallied against Bolsonaro

using the hashtag #EleNão, or Not Him.

Despite the critics, Bolsonaro continued rising in polls.

In the first round of the election,

he won 46% of the vote.

He's going to a runoff on Oct. 28 against Haddad,

who now faces an uphill battle.