Brazil's top election authority, the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE), has for the first time invited the European Union to observe its general election.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
President Jair Bolsonaro will seek re-election later this year.
Bolsonaro has questioned the validity of Brazil's electronic voting system and made baseless allegations of fraud in the 2018 race, stirring concerns he may not accept the results of October's poll.
Recent voter surveys show the far-right president trailing well behind leftist former leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
European Commission Vice-President Josep Borrell, who handles EU foreign policy, replied last month thanking the TSE for the invitation, saying he had to consult the bloc's 27 member states and the European Parliament, a person with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
That source and another, who requested anonymity to discuss diplomatic deliberations, said the EU plans to send a mission to Brazil in May to assess the viability of being an official observer for the election.
The EU embassy in Brasilia declined to comment. Bolsonaro's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The TSE told Reuters it has also invited other international groups and institutions to set up election observation missions, including the Organization of American States (OAS), the Carter Center, the parliament of South American trade bloc Mercosur, and the Washington-based International Foundation for Electoral Systems.
The electoral authority said the invitations were still being negotiated.
"The OAS has been invited before to observe the 2018 and 2020 elections. This year we are inviting other institutions," a TSE source said.
Bolsonaro has recently renewed his attacks on the Brazilian voting system, saying it is open to tampering and demanding the adoption of paper ballots.
He has questioned the independence of the TSE, whose top members are Supreme Court justices who have questioned the president's attacks on Brazil's voting system.
Last year, as supporters of then-US president Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol seeking to overturn Joe Biden's election victory, Trump admirer Bolsonaro said on social media, without providing evidence, there were lots of reports of fraud in the US vote.
His criticism of Brazil's election system and close ties to the armed forces have worried voters he may copy Trump's refusal to accept defeat.
Australian Associated Press
