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Brazil blocks US visa bid
Brazil denied visa requests for two Trump administration officials who planned to travel to Brazil to question the integrity of its electoral system ahead of the October presidential election.
“before millions of Brazilians vote in a presidential election on Oct. 4”
The Washington Post said the Foreign Ministry denied visas for Riley M. Barnes and Samuel Samson, with the planned mission described as casting doubt on the fairness and integrity of Brazil’s electoral system before “millions of Brazilians vote in a presidential election on Oct. 4.”
Reuters reported that Brazilian officials viewed the U.S. plan as an attempt to shape Brazil’s October presidential election, in which leftist incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will face Senator Flavio Bolsonaro.
The Independent reported that the visa requests were formally denied by Brazil on Friday, and that the U.S. delegation included Assistant Secretary Riley M. Barnes and Deputy Assistant Secretary Samuel Samson.
Officials trade accusations
Brazilian officials told Reuters that the U.S. initiative was perceived as an attempt to influence Brazil’s forthcoming October presidential election, and the U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Washington Post quoted a senior Brazilian official saying, “It is a ploy that is completely incompatible with Brazilian democracy,” and added that the government would move to “protect our voting system.”
The Independent framed the dispute around the October contest between Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, and it reported that Lula would defeat the senator in a potential runoff by 48 per cent to 43 per cent, according to the poll it cited.
The Washington Post also quoted a senior U.S. State Department official saying, “Now we send political appointees to discredit another country’s electoral system.”
October election stakes
The visa denial unfolded as Brazil’s election calendar approached, with The Washington Post citing a presidential election on Oct. 4 and The Independent describing an October presidential election between Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro.
“Having Milei at the convention helps energize and mobilize the party's more ideological base”
The Independent reported that Argentine President Javier Milei flew to Brazil on Friday to throw his weight behind Senator Bolsonaro’s presidential run at a party convention, and it quoted Eurasia Group’s head of Brazil, Silvio Cascione, saying, “Having Milei at the convention helps energize and mobilize the party's more ideological base.”
El Nuevo Diario said the Foreign Ministry rejected the requests for Riley Barnes and Samuel Samson, stating the mission was inappropriate given the context in which it was raised, after Flávio Bolsonaro claimed, without providing evidence, that Brazil’s electronic voting machines were manufactured by the Venezuelan company Smartmatic.
El Nuevo Diario also said the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) dismissed that claim and stated that that company never supplied electronic voting machines or programs used in the Brazilian electoral system, while noting that Flávio Bolsonaro defended the presence of international observers for the October 4 election.