Brazil seeks probe into alleged US funding targeting Supreme Court ahead of election

BRASILIA — Brazil’s attorney general has requested an investigation into alleged US government funding for a project critical of the country’s Supreme Federal Court (STF), just days before Brazilians vote in a presidential election.Attorney General Jorge Messias said foreign political interests seeking to interfere in Brazilian institutions or influence decisions belonging to Brazilian voters “cannot be tolerated.”The move followed a report by The Guardian that the administration of US President Donald Trump planned to direct funding toward a campaign opposing the country’s top court.According to the report, a $1 million US grant was allocated to a project titled “Countering Lawfare and Censorship in Brazil,” intended to support civil society groups challenging what they describe as judicial overreach and censorship by the court.Messias described the reported initiative as “an important alert for Brazilian sovereignty,” saying the issue was particularly sensitive because of the ongoing electoral process.The attorney general’s office asked the Federal Police and federal prosecutors to examine the origin, destination and purpose of the funds and determine whether they could constitute foreign interference in Brazil’s political or electoral process.The reported $1 million grant forms part of a broader package of more than $175 million from a US State Department human rights fund for projects around the world, according to The Guardian.The controversy comes amid longstanding tensions between supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro and the Supreme Court, particularly Justice Alexandre de Moraes.Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced to 27 years in prison after being convicted of attempting to overturn the result of the 2022 presidential election.Brazil will hold the first round of its presidential election on Sunday, Oct. 4. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is seeking another term, while Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, the former president’s son, is among the candidates.The US has not publicly confirmed that the reported funding was intended to interfere in Brazil’s election.