Brazil votes for next leader after bitter campaign

Brazilians prepared to vote Sunday in a presidential run-off that has split the country into two camps — those who think only current President Dilma Rousseff will continue to protect the poor and advance social inclusion versus those who are certain that only contender Aecio Neves' market-friendly economic policies can see Brazil return to solid growth.

The ballot starts Sunday at 8 a.m. local time (6 a.m. ET).

Ahead of that, Rousseff from the Workers Party held a slight lead in most polls over her center-right opponent Neves, who represents the Brazilian Social Democracy Party. Around 140 million Brazilians will participate in the vote.

Neither candidate received a total majority in an earlier round, forcing the run-off.

This year's campaign is widely considered the most acrimonious since Brazil's return to democracy in 1985, a battle between the only two parties to have held the presidency since 1995.

"Brazilians want it all. They are worried about the economy being sluggish and stagnant but they want to preserve social gains that have been made," said Michael Shifter, president of the Washington-based Inter-American Dialogue. "The question is which candidate is best equipped to deliver both of those."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.