Brazil has denied visa applications for two senior US State Department officials who planned to travel to Brasília to raise concerns about the reliability of the country's electronic voting system ahead of the October 4 presidential election.
The Brazilian foreign ministry confirmed on Saturday that the visas for Assistant Secretary Riley M. Barnes and Deputy Assistant Secretary Samuel Samson were formally rejected on Friday. The government deemed the planned visit an attempt at political interference in the electoral process, with senior diplomats calling the initiative incompatible with Brazilian democracy.
The dispute unfolds against heightened tensions between Washington and Brasília, compounded by recent US tariffs on Brazilian goods and an ongoing legal case against former President Jair Bolsonaro. The October race will pit incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva against Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, who recently made unsubstantiated claims linking Brazilian voting machines to a Venezuelan firm — a charge the Superior Electoral Court has refuted. Argentine President Javier Milei meanwhile flew to Brazil on Friday to attend a convention supporting Bolsonaro's campaign.