In U.S. political jargon, “splitting the ticket” means voting for a Democrat in one race and a Republican in another. In Brazil, lending your vote to different parties in the same election is actually very common, even if there isn’t a specific name for it yet. Here’s a closer look at the races for governor in Brazil’s three most populous states — home to around 40 percent of the country’s voters.
Polls show millions of Brazilians intend to “split their ticket” on Election Day.
A three-way race in São Paulo
In Brazil’s wealthiest and most populous state, the incumbent, Rodrigo Garcia, is struggling to make the runoff against Fernando Haddad, who served as mayor of São Paulo city between 2013 and 2016. Mr. Garcia is battling for second with the former infrastructure minister in Jair Bolsonaro’s government, Tarcísio de Freitas.
Mr. Garcia was originally elected in 2018 as lieutenant governor on João Doria’s ticket. Mr. Doria intended to run for president and won the nomination of his Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB), but quit after the party’s top...