Brazil's STF Extends Voting Hours by Two Hours in Unprecedented 2026 Election Move

Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF) took an unprecedented measure by extending voting hours nationwide by two hours, closing polls at 7 PM on Sunday. Justice Cristiano Zanin made the decision after requests from both presidential campaigns. The vote count had briefly begun but was halted following Zanin's ruling. The decision came in response to appeals from President Lula da Silva's and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro's campaigns, marking the first time such an extension has been granted. In the 2022 runoff, then-TSE head Alexandre de Moraes rejected a similar request from PT over alleged federal police operations delaying voters. In 2020, Amapá's municipal election was postponed due to a blackout, while a 2000 request for a three-hour delay was denied.