Brazil has denied visas to two United States officials who intended to meet with Brazilian electoral authorities less than three months before the October 2026 presidential elections. According to a Brazilian diplomatic source, the decision was made due to the "risk of political instrumentalization."
The U.S. officials requested the visas on July 20 for a mission that would address issues of "freedom of expression related to the elections." The Brazilian source highlighted that the request coincided with a private meeting between presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and foreign diplomats, during which the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro questioned the reliability of Brazil's electronic voting system.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State stated that the visit, scheduled to take place from July 27 to 30 in Brasília, was routine and would include discussions on electoral integrity, religious freedom, and freedom of expression with government officials, religious leaders, and members of civil society. He called any suggestion that the visit aimed to undermine the Brazilian elections a "baseless lie."
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who is running for re-election, warned at an event in São Paulo that "anyone who wants to come from abroad to meddle in Brazilian elections, I'm telling you now: they will get a lot of blows."
The episode occurs amid tensions between the administrations of Donald Trump and Lula, which include the imposition of two rounds of U.S. commercial tariffs on Brazilian products this month. Lula has accused Flávio Bolsonaro of being a "traitor to the nation" for allegedly encouraging the U.S. tariff measures, a claim the candidate denies.