Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro are statistically tied ahead of an Oct. 25 presidential runoff, according to polls released Tuesday by PoderData/Aya and BTG/Nexus.
The PoderData/Aya survey put Bolsonaro, of the Liberal Party (PL), at 51% of valid votes, compared to 49% for Lula, of the Workers' Party (PT). The BTG/Nexus poll showed Bolsonaro with 52% and Lula with 48%.
Both results fall within the respective margins of error, indicating a technical tie between the candidates.
PoderData/Aya recorded a narrower gap than in its survey on Oct. 8, when Bolsonaro led Lula by 53% to 47%.
The results represent a 2-percentage-point gain for Lula and a corresponding decline for Bolsonaro.
In voting intentions, PoderData/Aya recorded 48% for Bolsonaro and 46% for Lula, while BTG/Nexus put the candidates at 48% and 45%, respectively.
The remaining respondents were undecided, declined to answer or said they would cast blank or null ballots.
PoderData/Aya interviewed 3,000 voters by telephone between Oct. 10 and 12, with a margin of error of 1.8 percentage points.
BTG/Nexus interviewed 2,002 voters aged 16 and older during the same period, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points.
The BTG/Nexus survey was commissioned by financial institution BTG Pactual. Both polls were registered with Brazil's Superior Electoral Court.
In the first round on Oct. 4, Bolsonaro received 47.03% of valid votes, while Lula secured 45.16%, according to the results.
The candidates will face each other again on Oct. 25, when Brazilians will choose their next president.
