DOMINANT ANGLE
Budapest first notes the historic turnaround of Lula and the challenge by Flávio Bolsonaro, which the Hungarian press deems unlikely to succeed before the electoral court.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
According to Telex, Lula gets 51.78% against 48.22% for Flávio Bolsonaro; this is the first time since 1988 that the winner of the second round did not come in first in the first round.
- 02
The president of the Supreme Court extended voting by two hours after bus services were reduced in several cities; the count began at 11 PM.
- 03
Flávio Bolsonaro considers it "impossible" to accept the result, but analysts cited by HVG and 444 believe cancellation is unlikely, with Lula having more than 4 million votes ahead.
ANALYSIS
Budapest, October 26, 2026. Hungarian media is leading with Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's victory in the second round on Sunday, October 25, his fourth term. Telex refers to it as a "historic turnaround": since 1988, the winner of the first round had always gone on to win, yet Flávio Bolsonaro was in the lead at the beginning of October, with 47.3% against 45.16% for Lula. Telex gives Lula 51.78% of the vote against 48.22%, a wider margin than four years ago, when he obtained 50.9%. The site notes that the polls, which were favorable to Bolsonaro between the two rounds, had tightened to near equality in the final days of the campaign.
The account of the evening emphasizes the suspense: Lula was in the lead at the start of the vote count, then was caught up and briefly overtaken, before regaining the advantage. Telex explains that the vote count did not begin until 11 pm Hungarian time, because the president of the Supreme Court extended the polling stations' hours by two hours, after the withdrawal of buses in several cities prevented voters from voting. HVG and 444, which pick up the MTI agency's dispatch, mention transportation and weather problems.
Flávio Bolsonaro's refusal is treated as the second part of the story. During a press conference in Brasília, he deemed it "impossible" to accept the result, questioning the legitimacy of a prolonged vote, and 444 specifies that he wants it annulled. The three media outlets, however, cite analysts who believe the chances of annulment are slim: the Bolsonaro camp had itself requested extensions in certain regions, and Lula is winning with more than 4 million votes ahead.
The articles also describe the profiles of the two men. Lula, 80, who was imprisoned in 2018 for corruption before his convictions were annulled, had already been re-elected in 2022. 444 describes him as a "previously convicted candidate for money laundering," while Flávio Bolsonaro, 45, a senator, is presented as the son of the former president sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempted coup, himself targeted by an investigation according to Telex.
Looking ahead, HVG and 444 note that Lula, who will take office on January 5 for four years, promised in his victory speech to cooperate with a conservative Congress elected by the Brazilians and to expand citizen participation. 444 refers to its article from Saturday, which judged that the shift to the right in the country and in South America would probably not stop, even with a Lula victory.
