Extending voting hours after polling began undermined the legitimacy of Brazil's presidential election

Brazil's electoral court declared Lula the winner with 51.8% of the vote, according to AP. Flávio Bolsonaro rejected the outcome and sought annulment over a late voting extension, although no substantiated basis for overturning the result had been established. He was then ordered to surrender his passports and left Brazil for the United States, landing in Miami on 28 October.

Flávio Bolsonaro, who lost the 25 October runoff to Lula, declared himself the rightful president-elect in an open letter shared with journalists on 28 October. The letter alleges electoral fraud, citing a two-hour voting extension and a rise of over 10 million votes for Lula between rounds, and says he will lead the opposition from the United States; Reuters reports he provided no evidence. Brazil's electoral court declared Lula the winner by 4,430,191 votes, and fewer than 35,000 votes were cast during the extension.