Brazil has denied visa requests for two U.S. officials who intended to visit the country to express concerns about the integrity of its electoral system ahead of the upcoming presidential election, according to two Brazilian officials familiar with the matter. The move comes amid heightened tensions surrounding Brazil’s October vote, in which incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is set to face Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said the U.S. delegation would have included Riley M. Barnes, Assistant Secretary at the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, and Deputy Assistant Secretary Samuel Samson. Brazil rejected the visa requests last Friday, citing evidence that the U.S. visit was intended to politically exploit the situation and undermine confidence in the electoral process.
Attempts by the Trump administration to influence elections in Latin America have increased in recent months. Former President Donald Trump publicly endorsed Colombia’s newly elected president Abelardo De La Espriella and has expressed support for other right-wing candidates such as Javier Milei in Argentina and José Antonio Kast in Chile.
The Bolsonaro family has a history of casting doubt on Brazil’s electronic voting system. Prior to Brazil’s 2022 election, former President Jair Bolsonaro, a former army captain and right-wing populist, repeatedly questioned the security of Brazil’s voting infrastructure, echoing tactics employed by Trump in the United States. Despite these efforts, Bolsonaro failed to overturn the election result, which saw Lula victorious. Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court later ruled that Bolsonaro had abused his office by undermining the electoral system and subsequently barred him from seeking public office until 2030. He was also sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempting to subvert the election outcome, a sentence he is currently serving under house arrest.
As the country prepares for the 2026 election, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro has renewed skepticism regarding Brazil’s voting system. At a recent diplomatic event, attended by numerous foreign representatives, the senator called on international governments to send observers to monitor the election. He also claimed that Brazil’s electronic voting machines were supplied by Smartmatic, a company U.S. authorities have linked to allegations of electoral manipulation in Venezuela. Both Smartmatic and Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court have denied that the company provides voting equipment in Brazil.
Flavio Bolsonaro stated publicly and at the event that he has not questioned the integrity of the country’s voting system, despite the ongoing discourse on social media and within political circles suggesting otherwise. The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the visa denials or the planned delegation’s objectives.