The president of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), Minister Edson Fachin, signed today (1st) an agreement with the Mercosur Parliament (Parlasul) to authorize the entity’s participation in the role of observer of the October elections. It is the first observation agreement for the 2022 election. 
According to the terms of the document, representatives of Parlasul will observe the fulfillment of electoral rules, the stages of the electoral process and impartiality in the organization of the election.
The president of the court, Minister Edson Fachin, said that the agreement will guarantee Parlasul representatives total independence to visit polling centers, analyze mechanisms for counting votes and freedom of meeting with authorities and Electoral Justice officials.
“Opening the doors of the Brazilian Electoral Justice to our foreign partners symbolizes our commitment to transparency, visibility, integrity and efficiency in the electoral process. There is no democratic regime without institutions that are accountable and auditable, and this commitment must also reach the international community,” he said.
The president of Parlasur, Tomás Enrique Bittar Navarro, highlighted that Parlasur is an autonomous and independent body representing the population of Mercosur and defends democracy, freedom and peace in the region.
Navarro informed that, at the end of the observation work, the entity will prepare a report to contribute to the Brazilian electoral process.
“Among the responsibilities, [no acordo] that the TSE will provide the international mission with all the collaboration necessary for the fulfillment of its mandate. Mission members will be able to circulate throughout the country and will have free access to all political parties, candidates, TSE officials and organizations with political ends,” he said.
Other entities were also invited to act as observers of the elections, among them, the Organization of American States (OAS), the Electoral Network of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP), the World Network of Electoral Justice, the International Foundation for (Ifes) and the Inter-American Union of Electoral Bodies (Uniore). The agreements with the entities will be the next to be signed.
The participation of international observers in the elections has already been used in other elections in the country. In 2020, an OAS mission monitored the municipal elections.
In addition to Brazilian deputies and senators, Parlasul is also composed of parliamentarians from Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.
