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Brazilians head to the polls on Sunday to elect mayors and local officials, amid continued unrest since Michel Temer was appointed president after the country's Senate ousted elected president, Dilma Rousseff.
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More than 114 million voters are eligible to vote in an elections that will see 5,568 mayors and 310,016 councillors around the country be voted into office.
Clashes between protesters and police after the coup against Rousseff and the unpopular measures by the government of Temer have marked these elections.
Former Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is also head of the Workers Party (PT), participated in several rallies this week to support the party's candidates.
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According to the Defense Minister Raul Jungmann, at least 20 candidates for mayors and councilors were killed in Brazil since June.
Also, this week, a candidate for mayor in the city of Itumbiara Jose Gomes da Rocha, state of Goias, was killed while another three candidates were attacked in other states.
The government announced it will mobilize 25,000 soldiers to help guard polling stations.
The head of the country’s electoral body Gilda Mendes, said authorities "are concerned about the high level of violence."
In Brazil, voting is compulsory for people aged 18 to 70 who are literate, however voting is optional for 16 to 17 year-olds.
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