79% of Brazilian voters say the opinion of religious leaders does not influence their choice for president. The figure comes from a Quaest poll released on Monday (7), less than a month before the first round of Brazil's presidential election.
According to G1, which published the results, the poll asked voters how much weight religious leaders carry in their presidential vote. Positive answers total 18%: 10% say the opinion of a religious leader influences them a lot and 8% a little. Another 2% said they have no religious leader, and 1% did not know or did not answer.
Catholics and evangelicals
Rejection of religious guidance appears in every religious group. Among Catholics, 81% say there is no influence, while 9% acknowledge some weight. Among evangelicals, one of the fastest-growing religious groups in Brazil, 79% said they do not follow their leader's position when voting, and 13% said they do.
The pattern holds across political groups. Independent voters gave 80% no-influence answers; supporters of Lula, 77%; and supporters of Flávio Bolsonaro, 74%, the lowest share in the survey. Among those who say their vote is strongly influenced, the figure reaches 13% for both Lula and Bolsonaro supporters, against 9% among independents.
Women, education and income
Women deny the influence at a higher rate: 81%, against 8% who acknowledge it. Among men, 77% said no and 11% said the influence is strong. Education widens the gap. Voters with a university degree answered "no influence" at 86%, compared with 79% among those with only primary schooling. Income follows the same path: 75% of those earning up to two minimum wages say religious opinion carries no weight in their vote, a share that rises to 83% among those earning more than five minimum wages.
By region, the South has the highest no-influence rate, 80%. The Center-West and North have the lowest, 75%, and the Northeast and the Center-West/North lead positive answers, with 13% each. UOL Notícias also reported the overall 79% figure. The first round is set for October 4. In the same Quaest round published by G1, a simulated runoff shows Lula at 42% and Flávio Bolsonaro at 41%.