Brazil's right‑wing hopefuls Zema, Caiado and Renan lag in voter support

Recent polls show that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva leads the first‑round vote with about 40% support, while the three main right‑wing pre‑candidates for the 2026 presidential election remain far behind. Romeu Zema (Novo) registers roughly 2%, Ronaldo Caiado (PSD) about 7% and Renan Santos (Missão) around 9%, all within the margin of error. In a hypothetical second round, Caiado would edge Lula narrowly, but Zema and Santos would still trail.

During a live podcast, Zema claimed the federal government had "opened the doors" to betting platforms, blaming President Lula for rising debt and addiction. Host Rodrigo Arantes corrected him, noting that the regulation and taxation of bets were introduced under former President Michel Temer and that the sector expanded dramatically during Jair Bolsonaro’s administration. The exchange was widely shared on social media, highlighting the difficulty the right‑wing candidates face in presenting coherent policy positions.

Analysts attribute the right‑wing’s weak performance to the enduring influence of former President Jair Bolsonaro, especially among evangelical voters, and to the candidates’ inability to translate prior political visibility into concrete voter intent.