Brazil’s Liberal Party advanced in the elections, securing majorities in the Senate and expanding its congressional block while right-wing influencers Lucas Pavanato and Nikolas Ferreira broke all-time voting records for the Chamber of Deputies.
The legislative outcome reshapes the balance of power in Brasília just weeks ahead of the presidential runoff. While the Liberal Party celebrated unprecedented victories across both congressional chambers, the broader electoral map reveals a deeply divided legislature where alliances will dictate the fate of future reforms.
More than 158 million Brazilians were registered to participate in the general election, which renewed the entire Chamber of Deputies and two-thirds of the Senate.
Lucas Pavanato and Nikolas Ferreira Shatter All-Time Congressional Records
The conservative movement cemented its popularity at the ballot box through two prominent digital creators. In São Paulo, 28-year-old Lucas Pavanato secured 3,038,438 votes to win a seat in the Chamber of Deputies, nearly doubling the total of the second-place candidate, transgender lawmaker Erika Hilton. Pavanato began his political activism in 2016 during the impeachment movement against Dilma Rousseff and previously served as a city councillor in São Paulo.
Alongside him, Nikolas Ferreira of Minas Gerais pulverized previous electoral marks by gathering 3,119,051 votes. Both legislators surpassed the historical record previously held by Eduardo Bolsonaro, whose 2018 campaign had set the benchmark for the Chamber of Deputies.
Both figures have built massive followings exceeding millions of users on social media by campaigning against left-wing policies, feminism, and gender transition treatments, while advocating for stricter criminal penalties and the right of civilians to bear arms.
Ferreira, who grew up in the Cabana do Pai Tomás favela in Belo Horizonte and studied law, achieved national prominence through social media videos before serving on the Belo Horizonte City Council and subsequently entering federal politics. His career has also been marked by controversies, including judicial disputes over video usage in academic institutions and political confrontations inside the federal legislature.
The Bolsonaro Family Expands Its Reach in the Senate
The upper house of Congress saw a major influx of figures tied to the former presidency. Former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro secured a Senate seat representing the Federal District with 29% of the vote, gathering over 900,000 ballots in her first run for public office. She ran alongside Bia Kicis, another prominent figure from the Liberal Party in the Federal District.
| Candidate | State / District | Chamber | Vote Share / Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michelle Bolsonaro | Federal District | Senate | 29% (over 900,000 votes) |
| Carlos Bolsonaro | Santa Catarina | Senate | 25% (2 million votes) |
| Lucas Pavanato | São Paulo | Chamber of Deputies | 3,038,438 votes |
| Nikolas Ferreira | Minas Gerais | Chamber of Deputies | 3,119,051 votes |
The expansion of the Liberal Party in the Senate places the conservative bloc in a commanding position. According to data compiled by Poder360, right-wing forces secured 49 of the 81 Senate seats for the legislative term beginning in 2027, while the left secured 27 seats and unaligned or center formations accounted for the remainder.
Legislative Balance and the Road to the Presidential Runoff
Despite capturing the largest blocs in both chambers, the Liberal Party stops short of an outright majority. In the Senate, the party claimed 28 seats, leaving it 13 votes shy of the 41 needed for an absolute majority. In the lower house, the party holds 121 of the 513 available seats, remaining distant from the 257 votes required for a bare majority or the 308 needed to pass constitutional amendments.
These congressional numbers directly frame the upcoming presidential runoff scheduled for October 25, 2026, where Flávio Bolsonaro faces incumbent president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. With the legislature divided among traditional center blocs, the resurgent right, and the left, any future presidential administration will depend on coalition-building to work with the newly constituted Congress.
