Lula Reclaims Runoff Lead After Court Orders Extra Voting Hours

Brazilian voters cast their ballots in a presidential runoff on Sunday that is currently dominated by a dispute over voting hours. With approximately half of the votes tallied, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has moved ahead of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro. The lead emerged as ballots from the northeastern region, a traditional stronghold for left-wing candidates, began to arrive in volume. At 8:30 p.m. in Brasília, Lula had regained the position he held early in the count before being temporarily overtaken by his opponent.

The shift in results followed a decision by Supreme Court Justice Cristiano Zanin to extend voting hours. Lula’s campaign requested the extension, citing public transportation issues in three cities in Bahia. Zanin’s initial ruling arrived near the 5 p.m. closing time, creating confusion at polling stations. A subsequent order clarified that stations which had already closed would remain shut to begin counting, while others could accept voters for two additional hours. The electoral court, known as the TSE, paused the nationwide count for two hours to allow these extra ballots to be processed.

Polling firm AtlasIntel suggested that higher-than-expected turnout benefited Lula. Andrei Roman, the company’s CEO, told Reuters that Lula would be re-elected. Although the federal electoral court has not officially declared a winner, Lula’s supporters have already claimed victory on social media. This pattern of counting, where conservative candidates lead early and leftist candidates gain ground as results from poorer northern and northeastern states come in, mirrors previous Brazilian elections.

The extension has introduced legal uncertainty into an election still affected by the 2022 aftermath, when Jair Bolsonaro refused to concede defeat. Bolsonaro’s supporters later stormed government buildings, and he received a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup. Vera Chemim, a constitutional lawyer in São Paulo, noted that the transportation allegations and extended hours could trigger legal challenges if the losing side decides to contest the outcome. She explained that the losing candidate might argue many people were unable to vote even with the extended deadline.

Eduardo Bolsonaro, the brother of Flávio Bolsonaro, questioned the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in overseeing a matter typically handled by the electoral court. Speaking on a YouTube live stream, he asked if the ruling was strange and stated that it did not inspire credibility. Flávio Bolsonaro had separately sought extensions in at least three states due to bad weather. Lula, meanwhile, had requested extensions in at least nine states after alleging that officials cut election-day public transportation. A court in Bahia ordered the arrest of a senior transportation official in Salvador over allegations that he reduced the city's bus fleet.

Before Zanin’s decision, Lula described the situation as an abomination. The runoff is viewed by Lula and his allies as an opportunity to counter conservative trends in Latin America. Reuters reported on Saturday that a campaign within the US State Department aimed to help return the Bolsonaro family to power. President Donald Trump has not endorsed a candidate. He told reporters in Washington that he does not want to get into who he hopes will win but noted that the administration is watching the process.