Electoral Authority Adds Grandchildren Clause to Runoff Rules, 'Just in Case'
Officials say the new provision simply extends the existing runoff system to whichever descendants are available when the ballots run out.
Facing the possibility that Sunday's vote could produce another deadlock, Brazil's electoral authority this week inserted a new line into the runoff statute: if the Oct. 25 second round also fails to produce a majority, the contest will pass directly to the candidates' grandchildren, with no additional qualifying step required beyond ancestry.
"We came together as one electorate, undivided, and decided the fairest tiebreaker is simply more family," said a spokesperson for the authority, before adding that paperwork for third-generation candidates would be handled by the same office that processes parking disputes.
The clause does not specify an age minimum, prompting internal memos clarifying that a grandchild too young to vote may still run, provided a guardian is available to be sworn in on their behalf during recess periods.
Aides to both campaigns said they were already compiling family trees as a contingency, with one strategist noting that the office now effectively functions as a waiting room rather than an elected post, passed along until a round finally produces a clear winner.
The authority insists the measure is temporary, expiring automatically once a round of voting resolves with a majority, though it has not specified how many generations the clause is prepared to accommodate before that happens.