Brazil's Superior Electoral Court (TSE) is debating the creation of heteroidentification boards to verify black candidacies and prevent fraud in the 30% quota of electoral and party funds for the 2026 elections. The proposal will be discussed in public hearings before a decision by the ministers. The measure aims to address loopholes seen in past elections.
The TSE plans to adopt a system similar to that used in universities and public exams, where commissions assess phenotype to confirm racial self-declarations. This initiative follows detected frauds, such as changes in race and color declarations by at least 42,000 candidates between the 2020 and 2024 municipal elections, according to a Folha survey.
The court's commissions, including the Racial Equality one, will review the proposal for 2026 rules. They will undergo public hearings and, by March 2026, be voted on by the TSE plenary via resolution. The 30% minimum quota was set by a constitutional amendment approved by Congress in 2024, after amnesty for breaching the 2022 proportional rule, which required transfers equal to the percentage of black and brown candidates.
Gabriela Cruz, head of PSDB's Tucanafro, reports that parties requested the boards in 2024, but the proposal arrived after the deadline. "We're organizing to request it again. The quotas were created to give opportunities for black and brown people to occupy spaces of power. We need this identification care to combat frauds," she states. The group promises its own verification if the TSE does not proceed.
Martvs Chagas, PT's national secretary for Combating Racism, says the party will implement the structure for 2026 to create discomfort for frauds. Loopholes remain, such as pairings between white and black candidates in campaigns, where quota funds finance joint propaganda. Lawyer Ricardo Porto explains that such a strategy is legal if there is no mere fund transfer, deemed fraud by the Electoral Justice.
The NGO Educafro challenged non-compliance at the STF, holding meetings with former president Luís Roberto Barroso without progress. Now under Edson Fachin, the case awaits a new minister after Barroso's retirement. Frei David, Educafro's founder, criticizes practices like white mayors with black running mates to divert funds, common across Brazil.