{
  "id": 12162572,
  "title": "Brazil’s Electoral Court seeks to reduce abstention in runoff",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/brazils-electoral-court-seeks-to-reduce-abstention-in-runoff",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-05T12:55:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Agencia Brasil",
    "slug": "agencia-brasil",
    "url": "https://agenciabrasil.ebc.com.br/en/politica/noticia/2026-10/brazils-electoral-court-seeks-reduce-abstention-runoff"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Superior Electoral Court in Brazil is aiming to lower the voter abstention rate in the upcoming runoff election. President Kassio Nunes Marques announced plans to strengthen and refine existing mechanisms to address the issue. According to the court's tallying system, 21.08 percent of voters, amounting to 33.4 million people, did not vote in the first round. Additionally, there were 2.2 million blank ballots and 3.6 million invalid ballots, which are not counted as valid votes. The total eligible electorate was 158.7 million, with 125 million actually casting their ballots. The abstention rate in the first round was the highest since 1998, when it reached 21.5 percent. In the 2022 presidential election, 20.95 percent of eligible voters abstained.",
  "summary": "The president of the Superior Electoral Court, Kassio Nunes Marques, said on Sunday (Oct. 4) that he intends to take steps to reduce voter abstention in the second round. According to the Electoral Court’s vote-tallying system, 21.08 percent of voters abstained in the first round, or 33.4 million people. Notícias relacionadas: Flávio Bolsonaro, Lula head for runoff in Brazil’s presidential race.…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 7,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Nation Africa",
        "title": "Bolsonaro beats expectations in Brazil presidential vote, will face Lula in runoff",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/bolsonaro-beats-expectations-in-brazil-presidential-vote-will-face",
        "published": "2026-10-05T05:45:09.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Bloomberg",
        "title": "Bolsonaro pone a Lula contra las cuerdas rumbo al balotaje",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/bolsonaro-pone-a-lula-contra-las-cuerdas-rumbo-al-balotaje",
        "published": "2026-10-05T09:25:31.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Ajel English",
        "title": "Flavio Bolsonaro to face Lula in Brazil presidential runoff",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/flavio-bolsonaro-to-face-lula-in-brazil-presidential-runoff",
        "published": "2026-10-05T11:29:25.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "PBS NewsHour",
        "title": "Bolsonaro and Lula head to a runoff in Brazil's presidential election",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/bolsonaro-and-lula-head-to-a-runoff-in-brazils-presidential-election",
        "published": "2026-10-05T12:51:16.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "France 24",
        "title": "Brazil presidential election: 'Bolsonaro being ahead is a surprise,' researcher says",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/brazil-presidential-election-bolsonaro-being-ahead-is-a-surprise",
        "published": "2026-10-05T12:52:32.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Rio Times",
        "title": "Brazil Runoff on October 25, Flávio Bolsonaro vs Lula",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/brazil-runoff-on-october-25-flavio-bolsonaro-vs-lula",
        "published": "2026-10-05T13:43:25.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}