Right-wing Brazilians are twice as many as those who say they are left-wing

According to data from the new edition of the survey “A Carta da Democracia” by the Institute of Democracy (IDDC-INCT), the number of Brazilians who say they are right-wing (22%) is twice the number who say they are left-wing (11 %). The research was carried out between the 22nd and 29th of August 2023, that is, in the eighth month of the Lula (PT) government.

To give you an idea, in 2018, before the election of former president Jair Bolsonaro (PL), the number of Brazilians who declared themselves right-wing was 9%. This number reached its highest level last year, when it reached 24%.

The data coincides with other research that points to a mostly conservative position among Brazilians. Recent surveys have already shown that almost 80% of the population is against the legalization of abortion and 70% are against the decriminalization of drugs.

The survey was carried out by researchers from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), State University of Campinas (Unicamp), University of Brasília (UNB) and State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), who interviewed 2,558 voters in person in 167 cities from all regions of the country. The research was funded by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and the Minas Gerais State Research Support Foundation (Fapemig).

On another topic, the same survey points to the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), as the favorite to be Bolsonaro’s successor in 2026. Tarcísio scored positively in the groups of those who “like a lot” and those who “like more or less” of the former president.