Two competing narratives characterize the role of race in Brazil’s 2018 election. Journalists observe that Jair Bolsonaro “entranced” nonwhite voters while “insulting them.” Scholars argue that Bolsonaro politicized race, costing him nonwhite support. In contrast, this article argues that racialized patterns of voter behavior were not distinct from those in recent general elections, and that voters’ electoral choices varied within as well as between racial categories. This study incorporates recent findings on racial subjectivity in Brazil, which emphasize the interaction of racial identification and educational status in shaping racial consciousness. Survey data show that racial differences are driven by highly educated black voters, who are least likely to support Bolsonaro compared to educated white voters and more likely to support leftist candidates. By incorporating findings on racial subjectivity into theoretical predictions and leveraging the 2018 election, this study identifies conditions in which racial identification operates to shape electoral behavior.

种族在巴西 2018 年大选中的作用有两种相互竞争的说法。记者观察到，雅伊尔·博尔索纳罗在“侮辱”非白人选民的同时“迷惑”了他们。学者们认为，博尔索纳罗将种族政治化，导致他失去了非白人的支持。相比之下，本文认为，选民行为的种族化模式与最近的大选中的情况并没有什么不同，而且选民的选举选择在种族类别内部和种族类别之间有所不同。这项研究纳入了巴西种族主体性的最新发现，强调种族认同和教育状况在塑造种族意识方面的相互作用。调查数据显示，种族差异是由受过高等教育的黑人选民造成的，与受过教育的白人选民相比，他们最不可能支持博尔索纳罗，而更有可能支持左翼候选人。通过将种族主观性的发现纳入理论预测并利用 2018 年选举，本研究确定了种族认同影响选举行为的条件。