Flávio Bolsonaro imposes condition to open secrecy and increases tension

The dispute between Lula (PT) and Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) won a new chapter on Thursday, just three days before the second round of the 2026 elections. The legal team of Flávio Bolsonaro decided to analyze in detail the documents presented by the campaign of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva before definitively submitting the records themselves regarding the breach of confidentiality.

The campaign of the candidate of the PL aims to verify that the opponent has fulfilled all the requirements established in the negotiations between the two teams. The defense of Flávio states that it is prepared to present the documentation requested by Lula, but conditional on the delivery of the evaluation of the material made available by the petista.

Deltan Dallagnol participates in the analysis of Lula's documents

The analysis will be under the responsibility of lawyers Maria Cláudia Bucchianeri and Tracy Reinaldet, members of the legal team of Flávio Bolsonaro, as well as the elected senator and former prosecutor of the Republic Deltan Dallagnol (Novo-PR). The senator and former federal judge Sergio Moro (PL-PR) will also be able to collaborate with the remote work.

Dallagnol said he was given the task of verifying that the documentation delivered by the campaign is complete. The analysis may also cover information related to the Lula Institute and people close to the president.

In a second stage, the team intends to examine the documents in search of possible indications of patrimonial irregularities.

So far, there is no evidence of irregularities from this analysis, which still depends on the evaluation of the material presented.

Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro make agreement on TSE

Despite the impasse, representatives of the two campaigns met on Thursday (22) at the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), and reached an understanding on the disclosure of the information. The agreement establishes the total and simultaneous opening of the respective secrets, with the availability of the documents on a page of public access.

Flávio leads five polls against Lula, but dispute remains heated in the second round

However, the Flávio Bolsonaro team maintains that it needs to check in advance if the documentation provided by Lula corresponds to what was requested. There is still no definition as to how long it will take to complete this assessment.

Understand the dispute over secrecy

The controversy began during the presidential debate held by the Band on Sunday, when Lula challenged Flávio Bolsonaro to disclose information protected by secrecy. On Tuesday, the president presented to TSE and Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) an authorization to open their banking, tax and telephone secrets, in addition to those of family members, referring to the last eight years. The proposal was conditional on the adoption of the same measure by the opponent.

Flávio Bolsonaro has responded by authorizing the collection of your bank, tax and telephone data for the last 20 years, including information from companies you participate in as a partner or administrator. The candidate of the PL also presented additional requirements involving documents related to people close to the president, records of official expenses and information on the use of structures of the Presidency of the Republic.

Among the requests are details on presidential corporate card spending since 2023, appointments of the first lady Janja and expenses of the Dawn Palace. For Lula’s campaign, Senator Camilo Santana (PT-EC) stated that the president accepts the conditions presented, provided that Flávio Bolsonaro also fulfills his part.

Dispute takes place in the final straight of the 2026 elections

The clash over the opening of the secrecy has become one of the main issues of the presidential campaign in this final straight. With the second round scheduled for Sunday, October 25, Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro intensify public charges for transparency, while their legal teams discuss the details of the disclosure of the documents.

The expectation is that the presentation of the information can occur before the vote. However, the analysis required by the Flávio Bolsonaro campaign still poses an obstacle to the conclusion of the agreement. Until the publication of the information on Thursday, there was no confirmation that the full and simultaneous opening of the secrecy had been completed.