Brazil goes to the polls on Sunday: over 158 million voters called to vote

On Sunday, October 4, over 158 million Brazilians are called to the polls for the first round of the general election. According to data from the Superior Electoral Court, eligible voters number 158,745,463, a figure that marks an increase of 2,291,452 voters compared to the 2022 round.

The vote does not concern only the presidency and vice-presidency of the Republic: on the same day, 27 governorships, 54 Senate seats and 513 seats in the federal Chamber are being renewed, an electoral undertaking that runs through the entire institutional architecture of the country in a single election day. Polling stations will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Brasília time.

If no presidential candidate obtains the majority required in the first round, the date for a possible runoff has already been set: October 25, 2026. The two-round system mirrors the mechanism already provided for Brazilian presidential elections, designed to ensure that the head of state secures majority support, and it also applies to the governorships in cases where no candidate reaches the required majority.

The electoral machine set in motion on Sunday is imposing by its sheer size: an electorate exceeding 158 million people places Brazil among the largest democracies on the planet by number of potential voters in a single election, and the increase compared to four years ago reflects the growth of the electorate recorded over the period, according to the Superior Electoral Court.

The Brazilian vote also stands out for its entirely electronic organization: since 1996 the country has used electronic voting machines throughout its national territory, a system that allows first-round results to be available within a few hours of the polls closing, despite the country’s continental size and the dispersion of voters across a territory that includes remote areas of the Amazon.

In the hours before the polls open, electoral authorities remain focused on logistical preparations, with voting machines set to open on Sunday at 8 a.m., Brasília time, and to close at 5 p.m. the same day.