October 4, 2026 — Update to our October 3 story. Brazilians are voting today with no major violence or transport disruption reported so far. US consular services remain suspended with no reopening date, and a presidential runoff on October 25 looks likely.
Election day
- Voting hours: 8 am to 5 pm Brasília time. Counting starts at 5 pm with live bulletins from the electoral court. The hour of a final result is TBA.
- Runoff: October 25 if no candidate passes 50% of valid votes.
- Security: the justice ministry counted 107 incidents by 9 am, mostly electoral crimes such as vote-buying. More than 321,000 security agents are deployed nationwide.
- Nothing we read reports airport disruption. Polls close after our deadline, so we have no results or election-night reports.
US consular suspension
- Status: the US Embassy’s latest alert is still the October 1 notice suspending consular services. No reopening notice is posted.
- Police findings: Brazil’s Federal Police ran two searches on October 2 and found nothing to support the reported threat, the Rio Times reports. No arrests were made.
- New: President Lula’s campaign asked the electoral court on Saturday to investigate the suspension as possible interference.
- Australia closed its Brasília embassy on October 2, citing the US alert. Its reopening date is TBA.
- An unnamed consulate employee suggested services could resume Monday, October 5. That is unofficial.
Government advice
- United States: no new State Department advisory entry for Brazil.
- Canada: exercise a high degree of caution. Update date TBA.
- United Kingdom: last updated September 29; notes that protests can occur without warning around the two voting rounds.
What it means for airline travelers
- Tonight: avoid political gatherings and celebrations as results come in, and again around October 25.
- US citizens: do not go to the embassy or consulates. For an emergency, phone the embassy duty officer. A lost passport cannot be replaced in person until services resume.
- Carry your documents: keep copies of your passport and onward listing separate from the originals.
- Brazilian family and friends: US visa interviews are cancelled with no rescheduling timeline.
- Register with STEP (US) or Registration of Canadians Abroad.
Sources
- US Embassy and Consulates in Brazil (official) — Alerts
- UK FCDO (official) — Brazil travel advice
- Government of Canada (official) — Travel advice and advisories for Brazil
- CNN Brasil — Brasil registra 107 ocorrências nas primeiras horas das eleições
- Poder360 — Compra de votos lidera ocorrências no 1º turno das eleições
- Al Jazeera — Brazil votes in deeply polarised election
- Xinhua — Lula campaign asks Brazil’s top electoral court to probe U.S. consular service suspension
- Rio Times — US Consulates in Brazil Halt Services Before the Vote
- Rio Times — Lula Campaign Asks TSE to Probe US Consulate Closures
- Al Jazeera — US and Australia suspend diplomatic operations in Brazil before election
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