Psychiatrist Augusto Cury, candidate for the Avante party for President, is experiencing a meteoric rise on social media, with nearly 2.5 million new followers in just one week. The digital popularity index measured by the Quaest consultancy shows that Cury jumped from 37.8 to 54.5 points on a scale of 0 to 100 during the same period.
The candidate's surge comes on the heels of appearances on television programs and support from digital influencers like Pablo Marçal. The digital boom contrasts with the position Cury occupied until then, when he was practically ignored by rivals and the media.
The speed of the rise has led rivals to question how much of this growth is organic. Adversaries have started targeting the candidate with criticism, something that wasn't happening before, when Cury was seen as a name without real relevance in the race.
In practice, Cury has intensified the competition among aspirants trying to carve out space in the polarized scenario between Lula of the PT and Flavio Bolsonaro of the PL. The Avante candidate seeks to position himself as an alternative for voters who do not identify with either side of this polarization.
