Second round of elections in Minas Gerais: see images from voting Sunday in BH — Photo: Fernanda Torquato/TV Globo
The second round of the 2026 elections, held last Sunday (25), was marked by the upset of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) over Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) in Minas Gerais, the reduction in abstention and events related to heavy rains that hit part of the state.
Lula received 50.43% (6,351,099) of the valid votes in Minas, against 49.57% (6,241,786) for Flávio Bolsonaro. The difference was 109,313 votes. More than 13 million miners turned out to vote, while around 3.3 million stopped voting.
Check out the main events of the second round in Minas Gerais below from the topics below:
Lula's turn in Minas Gerais
Lula supporters celebrate re-election in Belo Horizonte
How the state's largest cities voted
Abstention falls 10.9% in the second round
Operation of polls and electoral events
Extension of voting and sealed ballot boxes
Around 2,200 votes after 5pm
Minas is the second state with the most reports of electoral harassment
Heavy rain marks voting day
Lula's turn in Minas Gerais
Voter registers celebration at Praça Sete, in Belo Horizonte — Photo: Fernanda Torquato
Minas Gerais was the only Brazilian state in which the leadership in the presidential dispute changed between the first and second rounds. On October 4, Flávio Bolsonaro had received 48.24% of the valid votes in the state, against 43.33% for Lula.
Three weeks later, the president reversed the deficit and won with 6,351,099 votes, compared to 6,241,786 for his opponent. Between the two rounds, Lula won more than 1.1 million additional votes, while Flávio Bolsonaro increased his vote by around 464 thousand votes.
Lula supporters celebrate re-election in Belo Horizonte
Child accompanies celebration at Praça Sete, in Belo Horizonte — Photo: Fernanda Torquato
The re-election of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) brought supporters to the streets of Belo Horizonte on Sunday night.
The celebration was mainly concentrated on Rua Sapucaí, in the Floresta neighborhood, in the Eastern Region of the capital, where a crowd gathered with flags, red clothes and musical instruments.
The party also spread to other parts of the city, such as Praça Sete and Viaduto de Santa Tereza. There were honking horns, music and demonstrations of support for the re-elected president. The celebrations took place despite Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) having won the dispute in the capital of Minas Gerais, with 50.80% of the valid votes, against 49.20% for Lula.
How the state's largest cities voted
Despite Lula's victory in the state, Flávio Bolsonaro was the most voted in eight of the ten largest cities in Minas Gerais: Belo Horizonte, Uberlândia, Contagem, Betim, Montes Claros, Uberaba, Governador Valadares and Ipatinga.
Lula won in Juiz de Fora, in Zona da Mata, with 57.66% of the valid votes, and in Ribeirão das Neves, in the Metropolitan Region of Belo Horizonte, with 52.27%.
In the capital, Flávio Bolsonaro had 50.80%, against Lula's 49.20%. The PL candidate's advantage, however, fell from almost 99 thousand votes in the first round to just over 24 thousand in the second.
Abstention falls 10.9% in the second round
Voters vote at the Governador Milton Campos State School, known as Central State, in Belo Horizonte — Photo: Fernanda Torquato
Voter abstention in Minas Gerais fell 10.9% between the two rounds, according to data from the Electoral Court. The number of voters who did not show up went from 3,735,098 in the first round to 3,327,941 in the second, a reduction of 407,157 absentees.
In percentage terms, abstention increased from 22.81% to 20.33%. Experts interviewed by TV Globo pointed to the mobilization of young and older voters, in addition to political engagement on social networks, as possible factors for increasing participation.
Operation of polls and electoral events
Woman inside a section of the Laura das Chagas Ferreira State School, in Aglomerado da Serra — Photo: Fernanda Torquato
The Regional Electoral Court of Minas Gerais (TRE-MG) assessed the voting in the second round in the state as peaceful. In total, 140 electronic voting machines needed to be replaced, equivalent to 0.27% of the 52,062 voting stations. In the first round, there were 171 substitutions.
The Electoral Court also registered 127 security incidents until 9pm on Sunday, mainly due to attempted violation of voting secrecy and irregular exit poll advertising. In total, 52 people were taken to police stations. In the first round, 408 incidents had been recorded.
Extension of voting and sealed ballot boxes
Voters arrive at Colégio Sagrada Família — Photo: Fernanda Torquato
The decision by Minister Cristiano Zanin, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), to extend voting until 7pm arrived when several polling stations in Minas Gerais had already closed their work.
In schools in Belo Horizonte, Contagem and Ribeirão das Neves, ballot boxes were sealed and voting slips issued before communication about the extension. Among the locations were schools in the Camargos and Barreiro neighborhoods, in the capital.
TRE-MG reported that it received the guidance around 6pm and determined that voting would continue in the sections that were still open. The measure was adopted after reports of difficulties in transporting voters.
Around 2,200 votes after 5pm
Voters at Santos Dumont Municipal School, in BH — Photo: Fernanda Torquato/TV Globo
A survey released by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) on Tuesday (27) showed that Minas Gerais registered 2,253 votes after 5pm in the second round. All were computed between 5pm and 6pm.
Across the country, 34,393 votes were counted after the time initially scheduled for voting to close. The extension was determined by the STF for sections that remained open, given difficulties reported by candidates for the Presidency of the Republic.
Minas is the 2nd state in reports of electoral harassment
Voters attend the Santos Dumont State School, in Belo Horizonte, to vote in the second round of elections — Photo: Fernanda Torquato
Minas Gerais ended the 2026 elections as the second state with the most reports of electoral harassment in the workplace, according to the Public Ministry of Labor (MPT).
By the end of the second round, the agency had received 212 complaints in the state, compared to 110 registered until the first round. Across Brazil, there were 1,939 records.
The complaints involve possible pressure, embarrassment and attempts to influence the political choice of workers. Among the cases investigated in Minas are situations involving companies from Belo Horizonte and Bom Despacho, in the Center-West of the state.
Heavy rain marks voting day
Poster points out sections that changed classrooms due to rain at the Carlos Drummond State School, in the Floramar neighborhood, in Belo Horizonte, this election Sunday (25th) — Photo: Cláudia Mourão/TV Globo
The second round was also marked by heavy rains in Belo Horizonte and the Metropolitan Region. On Sunday afternoon, the capital's Civil Defense issued two severe warnings to the population.
The first warning, sent at 12:57 pm, warned of the risk of flash floods and flooding. At 1:10 pm, a second statement reported the possibility of hail within the next two hours.
There were records of intense rain in the Caiçara and Camargos neighborhoods, in Belo Horizonte, and in Contagem. According to a TRE-MG report released at 4pm on Sunday, 349 voting locations in the state were left without electricity, but the ballot boxes continued to operate with their own batteries.
