Elections: Candidates cannot be arrested from this Saturday (19)

Candidates and candidates competing in the 2026 elections will not be able to be arrested or detained as of this Saturday (19). The measure is foreseen by the Electoral Code, for the 15 days preceding the first round, scheduled for October 4. It will be valid up to 48 hours after the end of the vote.

During the period of validity of the rule, arrests or detentions can only occur in cases of flagrant delinquency. The guarantee reaches all registered candidates for the electoral contest.

Foreseen in article 236 of the Electoral Code, the measure seeks to ensure the balance of the dispute, preventing arrests and political constraints from driving competitors away from the campaign.

In the same period, legal protection also applies to members of the Vote Receiving Bureaus (messians) and to the prosecutors of political parties during the exercise of their functions. According to article 302 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, it is considered a flagrant offence to be found committing the offence, has just committed it, is prosecuted immediately after the situation in which the authorship is presumed or is located with instruments, such as weapons, that indicate the practice of the crime.

4 October

According to the timetable approved by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), voters will go to the polls on October 4 to elect President of the Republic, governors, senators and federal, state and district deputies.

With information Agência Brasil and TRE

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