A new Datafolha survey shows that health and safety are the main concerns of Brazilians seven months before the country’s general elections. One in five respondents (21%) cited health as Brazil’s main problem, technically tied with security (19%). Voters also expressed fear about the economy (11%), followed by education (9%) and corruption (9%), amid the unfolding scandals at Master bank and investigations into irregular discounts at the National Social Security Institute (INSS).
Datafolha interviewed 2,004 people aged 16 or over across Brazil before the revelation, by GLOBO columnist Malu Gaspar, of conversations between Federal Supreme Court (STF) minister Alexandre de Moraes and Daniel Vorcaro hours before the banker’s arrest.
In the survey, respondents were asked to indicate their voting intention, how they evaluate the government and also answered the question: “Considering the areas that are the responsibility of the federal government, in your opinion, what is the main problem in the country today?”. The answer should be unique and spontaneous.
According to Datafolha, in September 2023, corruption, theft or dishonesty were cited by 6% as Brazil’s main problem. Since then, the number has always fluctuated within the margin of error.
Although they have not yet had a significant impact on Brazilians’ perception, the Master case and suspected links between businessman Fábio Luís Lula da Silva, son of President Lula (PT), and lobbyist Antônio Carlos Camilo Antunes, the “Careca do INSS”, have already fueled exchanges of attacks between government and Bolsonaro supporters in the pre-campaign.
The survey data shows that concern about corruption is lower among those who vote for Lula (4%) compared to those who vote for Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) (14%).
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Also according to Datafolha, corruption was cited as the main corruption in the second term of Dilma Rousseff (PT), with 34% and 37%. In her first term, morality as the main issue was 3% to 14%, but well behind health, which was 31% to 38%. Under Michel Temer’s government, corruption as the main problem plummeted from 32% in 2016 to 20% in 2018. The figure stabilized in single digits, varying between 3% and 9%, starting with Jair Bolsonaro’s government.
The Datafolha survey’s margin of error is two percentage points, and the confidence level is 95%. The research is registered with the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) under code BR-03715/2026.
