Voting in Brazil's presidential runoff has been extended by two hours after both campaigns made last-minute pleas to electoral authorities. A Supreme Court justice granted a request from President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's campaign, which cited incidents affecting buses in several states, while Senator Flavio Bolsonaro's campaign had also sought an extension in some areas, citing difficulties voters faced reaching polling stations because of heavy rain. Polls now close at 7pm Brasilia time.

A tight race

Brazilians are choosing between Lula, 80, who is seeking a fourth term, and Bolsonaro, 45, the eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, whose stronger-than-expected first-round performance turned one of Latin America's most prominent left-wing leaders into the election's underdog. In the first round on 4 October, Bolsonaro led with about 47% of valid votes against about 45% for Lula. Pre-election polls pointed to a close finish, with one MDA survey putting Bolsonaro on 46.3% and Lula on 45.0%.

Early count is preliminary

Early figures from the electoral court showed Lula ahead with 57.66% of counted votes against 42.34% for Bolsonaro, but with only 0.25% of electoral sections counted those numbers are preliminary and will change as more areas report. Brazil's electronic voting system usually produces a result within hours of polls closing, but the court has set no guaranteed time for declaring a winner.