A classified report by Abin, Brazil's federal intelligence agency, has rated the escalation of US pressure on the country ahead of the 2026 election as "critical". The disclosure came in the column of Mônica Bergamo in the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo on Saturday.

The document covers "threats to the 2026 electoral process". According to Folha, it raised the possibility of external influence and interference by the United States in the Brazilian election to a "criticality level". The report was sent to the presidency, the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), which runs Brazilian elections, and the Justice Ministry in late August.

Abin answers to the president and produces classified reports for state security planning. The full text is not public. As of Saturday morning, Bergamo's column was the only source on the document among Brazil's major news organizations.

The backdrop: friction with Washington

The warning arrives amid strained ties between Brasília and Washington. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is expected to use his speech at the UN General Assembly to defend national sovereignty, according to Jovem Pan and radio network CBN.

Election security planning already involved the agency. In August, InfoMoney reported that TSE Justice Nunes Marques was assembling the election security operation with the Federal Police, Abin and the Armed Forces.

The first round of the presidential election is scheduled for early October. None of the institutions that received the report has released it, and the document remains classified.