#brazildecides

The results are in and Dilma Rousseff has been reelected as Brazil’s president. After a dramatic election season and a brutal run-off election, Rousseff squeaked out a victory with just 51.4 percent of the vote. Her win sent her opponent Senator Aecio Neves of the Social Democracy Party home on narrow margins.

Rousseff of the Worker’s Party was granted a second term as the country is at a tipping point economically. Brazil has been experiencing growing pains as a slowing economy and job market are not reflective of the successful social welfare policies championed by Rousseff that have lifted Brazilians out of poverty and the globalized economy that has helped Brazil soar onto the world stage as an upcoming leader.

  As the last votes were counted on Sunday evening, the Brazilian people unable to chose a clear winner have sent into motion a runoff election for the Office of the President. The two winners, President Dilma Rousseff and Senator Aecio Neves, will advance to the next round of elections to be held on October 26th.

Receiving just 42 percent of the vote, the incumbent, Rousseff did not secure a large enough percentage of the vote to stave off her opponents. Now Rousseff must endure three more weeks of campaigning and an onslaught of attack ads if she hopes to hold a second term.

There is something important happening in Brazil and it has nothing to do with obsolete World Cup stadiums or the upcoming Olympic Games. Brazil is set to hold the first round of elections for their president and thousands of legislative seats on Sunday.

142.8 million voters will head to the polls on Sunday to cast their compulsory ballots, as every Brazilian citizens must vote in every election. This is a critical election not only to Brazil, but also to the rest of the globe as the world’s seventh largest economy makes a decision that will certainly impact its future direction. The current frontrunners, incumbent Dilma Rousseff and Marina Silva, are in a dead heat for the lead according to recent polls released over the weekend. Although some polls are showing Rousseff still hanging on to a lead she established for herself early in the campaign. But Silva is not far behind.