UPDATE 1-Lula leads Flavio Bolsonaro in Brazil election poll after Banco Master scandal

* Against Michelle, Lula would win re-election by 48% to 43%, Datafolha showed. * ⁠In a first-round scenario without Flavio on the ballot, Lula led with 41%, followed by Michelle ⁠at 22%, Zema ⁠at 6%, Caiado at 5% and Santos at 3%.


Reuters | Updated: 23-05-2026 00:40 IST | Created: 23-05-2026 00:40 IST
UPDATE 1-Lula leads Flavio Bolsonaro in Brazil election poll after Banco Master scandal

​Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva ​leads opposition Senator Flavio Bolsonaro in ‌the race ​for this year's presidential election, gaining ground after reports linking the right-wing challenger to a disgraced banker, a poll released ‌by pollster Datafolha showed on Friday. Leftist Lula would win a potential second-round runoff against Flavio by 47% to 43%, the poll showed. A May 16 survey had them tied.

* Lula led a first-round ‌scenario with 40% of the intended vote, followed by Flavio at 31%, Ronaldo Caiado ‌at 4%, and both Romeu Zema and Renan Santos at 3%. * The poll was conducted after Intercept Brasil published a story alleging Flavio negotiated a $24 million investment from former Banco Master owner Daniel Vorcaro to finance ⁠a film inspired ​on the life ⁠of his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro.

* Flavio has denied any wrongdoing. Lawyers for Vorcaro, who has been in ⁠custody since March following a sweeping probe into Banco Master's collapse, declined to comment. * Earlier this week, ​an AtlasIntel/Bloomberg poll showed Lula beating Flavio in a potential run-off by 48.9% to ⁠41.8%.

* The Datafolha poll also included a potential second-round scenario in which former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro would face ⁠Lula ​in Flavio's place, were he to step down from the race over the Banco Master scandal. * Against Michelle, Lula would win re-election by 48% to 43%, Datafolha showed.

* ⁠In a first-round scenario without Flavio on the ballot, Lula led with 41%, followed by Michelle ⁠at 22%, Zema ⁠at 6%, Caiado at 5% and Santos at 3%. * Datafolha surveyed 2,004 people between May 20-21, the poll has a margin of error ‌of 2 ‌percentage points in either direction.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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