The Pacto pela Democracia's defense of the election results was prompted by an evaluation of the attacks on the electoral system initiated by Bolsonaro and his supporters. The diagnosis was that the repeated actions discrediting electronic voting machines and the Electoral Justice system could lead to a challenge to the election results or a false allegation of fraud in the process.
To ensure that the election winners could actually assume their positions, regardless of who they were, Pacto pela Democracia conducted mobilization and alert actions, both in Brazil and internationally. The aim of this actions was to ensure that the election results would be quickly recognized by the largest number of countries, institutions, and relevant actors in the public debate, thus reducing the chances of antidemocratic contestation actions. In the following section, we will address these strategies.
Engagement with the international community
Through bilateral discussions with activists and organizations from various countries, the Pacto network understood that international involvement was crucial. This was important not only to refute fallacies against the Brazilian electoral system spread by the Bolsonaro government, including among diplomatic bodies, but also to emphasize the significance of international support for the Brazilian elections and the swift recognition of their results.
In July 2022, Bolsonaro convened a meeting with ambassadors, during which he claimed that the Brazilian electoral system was corrupt and accused the Electoral Justice of fraud. This event was a turning point in the institutional attempt to undermine the integrity of the elections. In response to these attacks, organizations affiliated with the Pact network issued a manifesto strongly condemning the former president's statements.
During this period, direct contacts were established with member countries of the European Parliament, the Like-Minded Group, and the OECD. Meetings were also held with representatives of the embassies of the European Union, the European Commission, and the embassies of Australia, Italy, France, Norway, New Zealand, and Norway.
The organizations that took part in bilateral discussions with embassies and international representatives included: WBO, Abong, WWF, Igarapé, Conectas, Observatório do Clima, Transparency International Brazil, Diplomacia para a Democracia, Instituto Marielle Franco, Mulheres Negras Decidem, Educafro, and Human Rights Watch.
To expand international efforts, and as part of an initiative organized by the Washington Brazil Office, between July 25th and 29th, 2022, various organizations from the network and representatives of our executive secretariat went to Washington in a delegation in defense of democracy. The goal was to present the Brazilian reality and threats to the electoral system and democratic process to U.S. Congress members and representatives of civil society.
The delegation included the following organizations: 342 Artes, 342 Amazônia, ABGLT, Apib, Comissão Arns, Conectas, Geledés, Greenpeace Brasil, iCS, IMF, IVH, Artigo 19, Nave, Conaq, Prerrogativa, Instituto Peregum, Transparency International Brazil, and Uneafro.
The Brazilian delegation was received by representatives from the U.S. Department of State and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, as well as important figures advocating for democratic values, such as Congressman Jamie Raskin, a member of the committee investigating the Capitol attack, and Senator Bernie Sanders. During these meetings, the delegation members raised alarms about the concerning state of Brazilian democracy and called for the immediate recognition of the election results shortly after confirmation by the Brazilian Electoral Justice.
As part of the agenda organized by the Washington Brazil Office, the Pacto pela Democracia network also met with ambassadors from the OAS (Organization of American States) and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Additionally, there were exchanges with American civil society, including the Atlantic Council, WOLA, Wilson Center, and USAID.
Following the visit, Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders introduced a motion to the Senate, warning about the risks to Brazilian democracy and urging a break in relations with the Brazilian government if the election results were not respected. As a result of these discussions with Congress, in September, the U.S. Senate approved an unprecedented recommendation to sever ties with Brazil in the event of a coup.
In September, a delegation of organizations from the collective visited the European Union to convey a message of alignment and share insights about the elections and democracy in Brazil to countries such as France, Belgium, and Switzerland. As a result, fifty members of the European Parliament urged EU leaders to monitor the elections in Brazil due to concerns about President Jair Bolsonaro's attempts to "subvert democracy," arguing that trade sanctions should be applied if he did so.
Support for Electoral Observation
International coordination was also crucial in supporting national and international entities engaged in the electoral observation process. This collaboration ensured the swift dissemination of reports produced by observing entities, allowing civil society organizations to rely on the support of observer delegations to validate the integrity of the electoral process and ensure the conduct of democratic elections across the entire national territory.
Organizations affiliated with the Pact for Democracy network maintained contact and provided information about the Brazilian context to the observation teams of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Southern Common Market Parliament (PARLASUL), the Inter-American Union of Electoral Organizations (UNIORE), the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), the Carter Center, the International Republican Institute (IRI), the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), the World Network of Electoral Justice (RMJE), and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers.
"Respect the Result" campaign
With the increasing risk of a challenge to the election results and coup attempts by the far-right, Pacto pela Democracia launched "Respeita o Resultado" ["Respect the Result"] campaign. It was a digital initiative based on a website that gathered statements from Brazilian political leaders, including figures from the right and far-right, in defense of our electoral system. Visit the site:
The campaign was conceived with the idea that if voices from the right or far-right expressed support for the Brazilian electoral system, even if these messages were from other times in their trajectory, and if these messages were widely disseminated through advertisements, it could create a unified discourse in defense of elections. This, in turn, could reduce popular support for a potential coup.
In addition to the website, the Respeita o Resultado campaign worked on social media, sharing video and image posts carrying the message: Pride in Brazil and Democracy. The official campaign video was shared on pages like “Quebrando o Tabu” and reached over 23 million views.
Após a confirmação e reconhecimento unânime dos resultados pela Justiça Eleitoral brasileira e pela comunidade internacional, o Pacto pela Democracia permaneceu em cooperação com as organizações da rede, atentos à normalidade democrática nos dias que se seguiram ao segundo turno. Em 8 de dezembro, marco oficial do encerramento do processo eleitoral, e em 12 de dezembro, durante a cerimônia de diplomação do presidente eleito, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a rede do Pacto lançou manifestos ressaltando a transparência do processo e celebrando a vitória da democracia, sublinhando a importância das eleições livres e justas.
