Brazil's Electoral Justice Hits Info Blackout, Recount Delay

The Brazilian Electoral Justice (TSE) rule known as the "defeso eleitoral"—which bans government propaganda, hiring, and project inaugurations within three months of elections—prompted the removal of tens of thousands of posts from federal and all 27 state executive websites on July 4. The purge eliminated information on health services, vaccination sites and social benefits, drawing criticism from transparency NGOs and the public broadcaster EBC, which had to restrict over 100,000 political publications.

In the municipality of Marília, São Paulo, the public totalisation of municipal council votes was postponed after a technical failure in the regional electoral system. The session, originally set for 20 July, was suspended by Judge Thaís Feguri Krizanowski Farinelli, with a new date to be announced. The delay follows legal disputes over a gender‑quota fraud case that previously reshuffled the council membership.