SÃO PAULO: Brazil heads to the polls Sunday in an election that could determine whether Latin America’s most populous country becomes the latest major nation in the region to turn toward the right, following conservative victories in Colombia, Peru, Chile and elsewhere. Voters will decide whether to remove left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from office.

Lula, 80, is locked in a tight race with Brazilian Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro. The incumbent previously spent time in prison over corruption convictions linked to a massive bribery scandal.

Neither candidate is expected to secure an outright victory in Sunday’s first round. The latest Datafolha poll gives Lula 42% support and Bolsonaro 38%, within a two-point margin of error. In a potential runoff, Lula leads by just 3%. However, previous Brazilian elections have shown that polls can miss the final result.

“The problem with Datafolha, which is the largest polling institute in the country, is that it tends to underestimate the force and voting intention in candidates running against Lula or the Workers Party (PT). This has been consistent for at least over a decade, and it underestimated Jair Bolsonaro’s number on the runoff of 2018 by 7%,” Roberto Reis, an electoral strategist who works with candidates across multiple levels and analyzes polling aggregators, told News Media. “According to the latest aggregator data such as MRT News or Polling Data, we currently have Lula leading Bolsonaro 42% to 39% on the first runoff of the elections with Bolsonaro leading Lula 45% to 44% on the runoff,” he added.

For one Brazil analyst, the election represents more than another left-versus-right contest in Latin America. Brazil is the hemisphere’s largest remaining obstacle to a broader conservative shift. Although Cuba, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua and Uruguay also have left-wing governments, Brazil is by far the largest and most influential economy among them. The International Monetary Fund ranks it as the world’s 11th-largest economy, while the World Bank places it 10th.

Throughout the campaign, Bolsonaro has worked to build ties with President Donald Trump while portraying himself as a potential U.S. partner in the Western Hemisphere. The two met at the White House in May and discussed organized crime, tariffs and Brazil’s reserves of rare earths and critical minerals. Brazil has substantial supplies of these materials, which could help reduce U.S. and European reliance on Russia and China.

Bolsonaro also said he had asked Washington to designate Brazil’s two largest criminal organizations—the First Capital Command, or PCC, and the Red Command, known in Portuguese as Comando Vermelho—as terrorist groups. The State Department approved both designations on May 28, and they took effect in June under Section 219 of the Immigration and Naturalization Code.

The U.S. designations angered Lula and his allies, who described them as direct interference in Brazil’s domestic affairs. They also viewed the move as an endorsement by the Trump administration of Bolsonaro’s argument that Lula’s left-wing populist government has failed to do enough to confront organized crime.

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Flávio Bolsonaro has proposed a free-trade agreement between Brazil and the United States, with the possibility of expanding it into a wider trade framework for countries across the Americas. His campaign has also highlighted cooperation with Washington on critical minerals, an increasingly strategic issue as the Trump administration seeks to reduce U.S. dependence on China, according to a recent report by Brazil’s leading newspaper, Folha de S. Paulo.

Such policies would mark a clear shift from Lula’s current foreign-policy priorities.

China is Brazil’s largest trading partner, and Brazilian agricultural exports to the country exceeded $55 billion in 2025, according to Reuters. Lula has defended close relations with Beijing and pursued what he calls an independent foreign policy—one that has often taken an aggressive tone toward the United States and some of its closest allies, including Israel.

Relations between Lula and Trump have been significantly more strained. In July, Washington imposed new 25% tariffs on a broad range of Brazilian goods, affecting approximately $7 billion in exports. Lula’s government has challenged the tariffs and sought negotiations, so far with limited success. Washington has also barred most new permanent visa requests from Brazil, a policy that could affect future green-card applications.

A Bolsonaro administration would seek closer economic and security ties with the United States, stronger alignment with Israel, a more forceful response to China’s influence in Brazil and less friction within the hemisphere and on the global stage. Turning those promises into policy would depend on negotiations with Congress, Brazil’s powerful bureaucracy and the country’s economic priorities—particularly those of its influential agribusiness and mining sectors.

A Lula victory would preserve a foreign-policy approach centered on strong commercial ties with China and strategic autonomy from Washington, along with his government’s current position on Israel and Gaza. Both positions conflict directly with Trump’s policies and could further strain U.S.-Brazilian relations.

With the presidential contest increasingly likely to go to a second round, the election’s outcome could play a decisive role in shaping a new political order in the Americas—and determining the future of U.S. interests across the hemisphere.

In 2012, Kim Zolciak appeared to be at the height of her reality-TV fame. One year after marrying former NFL player Kroy Biermann, the Real Housewives of Atlanta star had become one-half of Bravo’s most talked-about couples.

Their first meeting was filmed for RHOA, and viewers quickly embraced the couple. Their popularity led to a spin-off, Don’t Be Tardy, which aired from 2012 through 2020. Named after Zolciak’s signature 2009 song, the series followed the couple and their expanding family of eight through a life that often appeared both comfortable and chaotic.

At the time, Zolciak seemed to have the reality-star dream package: a high-profile romance, a lavish home and a large family.

Fifteen years after her rise to Bravo fame, however, her personal life has become increasingly turbulent.

Zolciak and Biermann, who once spoke openly and frequently about their passionate relationship, are now locked in a bitter separation and divorce that remains unresolved. Their breakup has also unfolded alongside allegations against their 15-year-old son involving sexual assault, claims that the family has denied.

People who have known Zolciak for years say they are not entirely surprised that her pursuit of reality-TV fame has spiraled into what now looks like a real-life crisis.

Jonathan Jaxson, who served as Zolciak’s publicist between 2007 and 2009, described the environment surrounding her life to the Daily Mail as “just a very toxic world.”

Having worked closely with her, Jaxson also said he understands how quickly people can become drawn into the reality star’s fast-moving orbit.

“She was the life of the party,” he recalled, while suggesting that the world around Zolciak could feel both “addictive” and damaging.

He compared the experience to being trapped in a spectacle: “Gosh, the train wreck I’m part of—and you can’t get off the wagon.”

Jaxson said he last spoke with Zolciak in 2022, a year before she filed for divorce following 11 years of marriage. Zolciak and Biermann first met in 2010 at a charity event called Dancing With Atlanta Stars, which was recorded for television. They married on November 11, 2011.

Since announcing their separation in 2023, Zolciak and Biermann—the former Atlanta Falcons linebacker and Surreal Life cast member—have repeatedly reconciled and broken apart. Their relationship has also been marked by lawsuits, custody disagreements and mounting financial problems, culminating in the sale of their large Alpharetta, Georgia, home last year.

Over the past two years, Zolciak has remained in the headlines amid highly public disputes with Biermann, the father of her six children: Brielle Karenna Biermann, 29; Ariana Lenee Biermann, 24; Kroy “KJ” Biermann Jr., 15; Kash Kade Biermann, 14; and 12-year-old twins Kaia Rose and Kane Ren Biermann.

Last month, KJ was charged in connection with a sexual-assault case involving a female classmate. The teenager and his family have denied the allegations, which relate to an alleged April 23 incident at a Life Time fitness facility in Alpharetta, Georgia.

According to a police report obtained by the Daily Mail, KJ is accused of forcing the girl to perform oral sex and of attacking her with his hands against her will.

A Georgia grand jury indicted KJ on seven felony counts. The charges include aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, aggravated sexual battery, three counts of sexual battery involving a child under 16 and false imprisonment.

KJ was released last month after posting a $200,000 bond. If convicted, he could receive a sentence of up to 25 years in prison without parole because of the multiple felony assault charges tied to the allegations. His arraignment is set for October 14.

‘The allegations being made against my son are nothing short of reckless and deeply troubling,’ Zolciak told the Daily Mail in an August statement. ‘He categorically denies ever being involved with this woman or engaging in the conduct she has alleged.

‘False accusations can have devastating consequences not only for the person being accused, but also for genuine survivors of sexual assault and abuse. Every legitimate allegation deserves to be taken seriously and investigated based on the facts and evidence. At the same time, no one should be publicly condemned based solely on an accusation.

‘We remain confident that the facts and evidence will establish the truth, and we ask that people allow the proper process to take its course rather than spreading unproven allegations,’ she said.

KJ’s attorney said he intends to plead not guilty.

The estranged spouses put their differences aside long enough to appear together at KJ’s bond hearing last month. They arrived at Fulton County Superior Court in Atlanta separately and did not interact in the courtroom at all.

Since their April 2023 separation, they have accused one another of myriad things including alleged spousal abuse in court filings.

In 2024, Biermann was detained, handcuffed and ordered to wait in a cop car in front of the home he then-shared with Zolciak. At the time, he claimed in an incident report that he was ‘physically attacked’ by his estranged wife, alleging that she ‘scratched the c**p out of my face.’

He alleged that she was the ‘abuser’ in the report, but Zolciak claimed to police that Biermann ‘threw me off a f***ing ladder’ and ‘tossed me to the ground.’

Biermann, however, explained to the police in the report that Zolciak had ‘lost her balance, and I caught her’ while she was handling curtains. He also claimed in the report that she was ‘verbally abusive’ while completing the household task and allegedly ‘drinks every day.’

The police interrogated two of their children, KJ and Kaia, who were home at the time of the alleged altercation. In footage captured by a police officer’s body camera, KJ is seen screaming at his mother: ‘You are a horrible example of a parent!’

Biermann was ultimately released, according to the report, but the pair were ordered to stay separated the rest of the night since they still lived in the same house at the time. The cops had instructed Zolciak to file for a protective order if she felt she was in danger.

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Jaxson, who reconnected with Zolciak during her separation from Biermann, claimed to the Daily Mail that around that time, Biermann had become ‘very unkind. Not a friendly human on the phone at all, very aggressive in tone,’ which ‘raised flags for me.’

Earlier this month, the Daily Mail reported that, since 2025, a court-appointed Guardian ad litem was tasked with watching out for the children’s best interests while the couple battled over custody.

The estranged exes share joint legal custody of their minor children, but Biermann currently has primary physical custody, which means he has final say on educational, non-emergency medical and religious decisions. The Housewives star’s two adult children, Brielle and Ariana, are currently estranged from their adopted father Biermann.

Zolciak has twice temporarily lost physical custody of the children, once in April and again on May 1, according to temporary orders filed by the judge, who ruled her to be ‘unstable and unfit.’

One example Biermann provided in the April court filing of Zolciak being an allegedly ‘unfit’ parent, was that ‘she frequently leaves them alone or under the care of others for significant periods of time,’ and she ‘takes no initiative and shows no interest in providing for the children’s mental health and well-being, leaving all therapy appointments and scheduling to [Kroy].’

However, Zolciak has alleged that Biermann was also lacking as a parent, claiming in a June 2026 filing that KJ, specifically, suffered ‘abuse’ at the hands of his father.

In the filing, the reality star claimed in an October 2025 incident between KJ and Biermann at his home that ‘the eldest minor child reported being physically thrown over the couch by Plaintiff during a heated argument at Plaintiff’s home.’

She alleged that ‘at least one of the minor children has disclosed to his therapist (heaped upon him by the Guardian ad Litem) a pattern of mental, emotional and physical abuse by Plaintiff; yet no professionals have sounded an alarm because the abuse did not ‘leave marks.”

Zolciak further claimed that ‘KKJ [sic]’ – most likely referring to KJ – ‘outlined in great detail how often he is pushed, shoved, grabbed, yanked and generally physically battered by Plaintiff during his parenting time,’ which he allegedly discussed with his therapist.

The Guardian was also informed of an alleged incident that took place during spring break 2026 when Biermann reportedly threw ‘a pan at a child’s head during a heated argument while on vacation,’ according to Zolciak’s June motion for an emergency custody hearing.

The child was allegedly KJ’s girlfriend, and her mother wrote a letter to the court explaining the incident, which stated, ‘[KJ’s girlfriend] became the main focus with Kroy yelling so loudly that she was crying and trembling in fear.’

In that same filing, Zolciak alleged that the young girl’s mother claimed to her that her daughter was ‘subject to frightening rage fueled tirades by Plaintiff.’

Zolciak has claimed in court documents that the Guardian chose not to investigate the allegations. The Guardian did, however, recommend Biermann ‘undergo anger management therapy.’

Biermann, for his part, claimed in his July 13 response filing that Zolciak’s tactics throughout the proceedings ‘create enough chaos to deflect attention away from Respondent and all the destruction that her narcissistic-fueled actions have brought upon these children and their lives.’

He added that she allegedly ‘lashes out in a desperate attempt to distract attention from her own substantial shortcomings as a parent.’

In an August 2025 motion for immediate change of custody and parenting time filing, Biermann claimed that Zolciak and their daughter Kaia have a ‘tumultuous relationship,’ and that she ‘abused’ Kaia.

At the time, Biermann, along with the endorsement of the Guardian, requested that the court allow the 12-year-old to spend the summer in Montana with his parents.

He claimed in the filing: ‘Additionally, there is immediate concern for the physical, emotional and mental safety of the female child because if the current parenting plan remains in place, she will be forced to reside with her tormentor and abuser.’

The request was ultimately granted.

Jaxson claimed that Zolciak’s ‘very turbulent’ lifestyle seemed to become ‘toxic.’

Jaxson, however, has a lot of thoughts on the situation with KJ, who, after being released from Atlanta Metro Regional Youth Detention Center on bond, is back living with his mom. 

‘Can you imagine you’re trying to play football, be the star athlete, and then the wig showing up along with Kroy,’ Jaxson said, using Zolciak’s nickname. ‘It’s hard. You’re going to be judged.’

Zolciak has refuted the accusations against her son, who, as part of his bond conditions, must attend school virtually and abstain from social media and cellphone use, as well as be subject to electronic monitoring by authorities.

The teenager is also barred from having any direct or indirect contact with his alleged victim, her family or anyone under the age of 16.

In a statement to the Daily Mail last month, Zolciak said: ‘My son voluntarily took a polygraph examination regarding these allegations and passed.

‘Additionally, an examination was conducted, and no DNA belonging to my son was found.’

The alleged victim was examined at the North Fulton Hospital in Georgia on April 24, a day after the alleged incident, and, per the report, no evidence of male DNA was found in her mouth or vagina.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Zolciak’s representatives for comment.

However, he said Kim is ‘very lucky’ with her new boyfriend Kyle Mowitz, whose estranged wife Jillian Green is romantically involved with Biermann.

Jaxson’s advice for the reality star during this difficult time? Focus on ‘your truth instead of putting other people down.’

‘If I was her publicist now, I would say, “Kim, let’s focus on your wig line. Let’s focus on book. Let’s focus on other things.”‘

But that could be difficult for Zolciak, according to Jaxson, who believes she does not appear to be a ‘trusting person.’