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Oct 8, 2026

Brazil’s Federal Police closes US interference review, but political claims persist

The case began with government concerns about possible foreign financing but ended without a formal criminal inquiry or evidence of illicit intervention. Its closure has sharpened the divide between those who see the allegation as unsubstantiated and those who continue to frame Brazil’s vote through broader claims of political interference.

Brazil’s Federal Police has closed a preliminary review into allegations that the US government sought to interfere in Brazil’s 2026 election, saying it did not find enough evidence of wrongdoing to substantiate the claim. The review did not develop into a formal police inquiry, according to reporting on the case.

The matter was triggered by a request from the Attorney General’s Office (AGU), Brazil’s federal government legal arm. The request followed a Guardian report alleging that US State Department human-rights funding could support projects opposing what participants describe as judicial overreach and censorship in Brazil. The AGU’s concern, as reported by CartaCapital, was that funds might be used to support groups seeking to destabilize Brazilian judicial institutions.

Police chief Andrei Rodrigues had already urged caution when the request became public on the day of the first-round vote. He said the agency had received an AGU representation proposing a review of “external interference,” but stressed there was no formal inquiry and “no concrete indication of international interference” at that point.

Commentary from the political right has largely treated the closure as a repudiation of the original allegation. Rodrigo Constantino wrote that “another narrative goes down the drain,” linking to news of the decision. Paulo Figueiredo, meanwhile, amplified a broader claim that USAID had engaged in election interference and regime change globally—a claim presented in the post without evidence specific to Brazil’s case.

A contrasting online allegation came from Allan dos Santos, who reposted a claim that Lula and his government, rather than a foreign actor, had interfered to prevent Bolsonaro from winning outright in the first round. That assertion concerns domestic vote conduct and is separate from the closed federal review of alleged US involvement.