POLITICS · BRAZIL
Key Facts
- —The country Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, votes in a presidential runoff on Sunday 25 October between Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro.
- —Why it matters PEC 18/2025 would write a national public security system into the Constitution and toughen penalties for faction and militia members.
- —Why now The Senate had set a floor vote for Thursday 15 October, ten days before the runoff, and then pulled the text from the agenda.
- —What happened Senate president Davi Alcolumbre removed the amendment from the agenda on 15 October after five floor amendments arrived, two of them cutting the age of criminal responsibility.
- —The numbers Amendment 84 would set the age at 16, or 14 for listed crimes; amendment 87 would set 16 for heinous crimes only. Passage needs 49 of 81 senators.
- —Power Index Brazil ranks 1st of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 75.0 points (October 2026 edition).
- —What it means for you The delay leaves a federal crime-fighting overhaul, and the ministry the government ties to it, unsettled before a runoff that US investors watch.
- —Still open Whether senators vote next week, split the age amendments into separate proposals, or leave the security text unchanged for the Chamber.
Runoff · Sunday, 25 October
Brazil Runoff 2026: Lula vs Flávio
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Prediction markets · who wins the runoff
Implied chance of winning Brazil’s presidency on 25 October, from traders’ prices.
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Flávio Bolsonaro 79.2% · Lula 20.5% (US$184 million traded)
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Flávio Bolsonaro 79% · Lula 22%
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The Brazil Senate delays security PEC 18/2025, the Lula government’s flagship crime amendment, after its president pulled the vote on Thursday 15 October. The text had cleared the justice committee on Wednesday 14 October and was due on the floor from 2 p.m. in Brasília.
For US readers, the delay matters because the amendment is the centrepiece of the government’s security agenda in the closing stretch of a runoff that investors follow. Folha de S.Paulo says the government ties the creation of a Ministry of Public Security to its approval.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva leads the left-wing Workers’ Party (PT) and meets Flávio Bolsonaro of the conservative Liberal Party (PL) in the runoff. Senator Rogério Marinho (PL-RN), the opposition leader in the Senate, coordinates Flávio Bolsonaro’s campaign, GZH and Folha note.
What Alcolumbre Said When He Pulled the Vote
Agência Senado, the upper house’s own news service, recorded that Davi Alcolumbre announced the withdrawal during Thursday’s session. Alcolumbre, the Senate president, belongs to the centre-right União Brasil party and represents Amapá.
He said the vote was postponed to avoid a hasty discussion and to let senators reach an understanding on the amendments. He also said he was taking the blame for amendments that would change the text and send it back to the Chamber of Deputies.
A special-calendar request (RQS 713/2026), filed by Senator Eduardo Braga of the MDB and other party leaders, had been approved on Wednesday 14 October. It put the amendment on Thursday’s floor agenda.
Alcolumbre said he was heeding critics who felt he slipped the calendar vote into the celebration over the end of the six-day work week. Their complaint, as he described it, was that this avoided a roll-call request, and that vote is covered in Brazil Senate Passes 5-Day Week, 75 to 1.
The Senate president also said the postponement did not answer a request from the government. Marinho questioned the decision, and Agência Senado noted that he stressed society’s expectation that the proposal pass.
The Five Floor Amendments Behind the Delay
Agência Senado lists five new floor amendments to PEC 18/2025, numbered 84 to 88. Two of them concern the age of criminal responsibility, which stays at 18 under current rules.
Amendment 84, by Marinho, would set the age at 16 as a general rule and at 14 for heinous crimes, torture, drug trafficking, terrorism and membership of criminal organisations. Amendment 87, by Camilo Santana (PT-CE), keeps 18 as the rule but lowers it to 16 for heinous crimes.
Santana leads the Workers’ Party in the Senate, and Folha describes his text as a middle path answering the opposition’s move. The paper says it split the PT base, which has historically opposed lowering the age, and that Lula phoned the rapporteur to say no amendment should be accepted.
The other three amendments deal with different topics. Carlos Portinho (PL-RJ), the PL’s leader in the Senate, filed number 85 on the role of the Armed Forces in public security.
Eduardo Gomes (PL-TO) filed number 86 on traffic agents and number 88 on staff who work with teenagers serving socio-educational measures. The split in the government camp before the withdrawal is covered in Lula Camp Splits on Brazil Criminal Age Cut to 16.
Why the Brazil Senate Delays Security PEC 18/2025
The reason is procedural as much as political, because the Chamber of Deputies has already passed the text. GZH says that happened in March this year, without the criminal-age question.
Agência Senado notes that approved amendments altering the text send the PEC back to the Chamber for a new analysis. Folha says the government wanted the proposal approved quickly and unchanged before the runoff.
A constitutional amendment needs 49 of the 81 senators, a threshold Folha applies to the opposition’s age proposal. The Constitution also requires two rounds of voting in each house.
Rapporteur Rogério Carvalho (PT-SE), the senator who wrote the committee report, offered a way out on Thursday, GZH reports. He said he will ask for the two age amendments to proceed on their own as new PECs, leaving the security text unchanged.
What Is at Stake in the Text
PEC 18/2025 is a government initiative, sent to the Chamber of Deputies in April 2025. It writes the Unified Public Security System (Susp) into the Constitution and widens cooperation among municipalities, states and the federal government, GZH says.
Correio do Povo says it toughens penalties for faction and militia leaders and members and widens the competence of the Federal Police. It would also let the Federal Highway Police patrol federal roads, railways and waterways, the paper adds.
For background on the committee stage, see Brazil’s Public Security Amendment Explained. For the timetable as it stood on Wednesday, see What Happens Next for Brazil’s Security PEC.
Who Blames Whom for the Delay
Marinho said Alcolumbre withdrew the text to spare the government the embarrassment of voting down an amendment from the PT’s own Senate leader, Folha reports. He called Santana’s text a palliative, but said the opposition would have backed it as a step in the right direction.
Teresa Leitão of Pernambuco, the government’s leader in the Senate, said the party would accept no amendments and that the opposition’s age cut would be defeated. She added that Lula knows the criminal-age issue must be faced, but at another time.
Bolsonaro-aligned senators say government allies asked for the delay after finding themselves in a bind over the two amendments, Folha reports. Alcolumbre rejected that account, saying the decision was his alone.
Folha and other Brazilian outlets report that Lula told TV Globo that evening he supports lowering the age to 16 for heinous crimes. He objected only to debating it inside the security PEC, which did not originally cover the topic.
Some government allies now expect a vote next week, Folha says. Jaques Wagner (PT-BA) wants the age question handled separately, as it was in the Chamber of Deputies.
What It Means for You
For US readers, the delay means the security overhaul will not be settled this week, and the plan to announce a new Ministry of Public Security before the runoff is no longer certain. Folha links that ministry to the amendment’s approval.
Nothing changes in day-to-day policing or travel rules, because the text is still a proposed constitutional amendment. Both camps are now arguing over crime policy ten days before the runoff.
The core of the text is not what stalled, since the dispute centres on the criminal-age amendments. That points to a quick vote once the dispute is settled, though no date exists.
What Is Not Known
No source sets a new date for the vote, and Alcolumbre gave none in the remarks recorded by Agência Senado. Government allies talk of next week, but that is an expectation, not a schedule.
It is not known whether the age amendments will be split into separate PECs, as Carvalho proposes, or put to a floor vote. Nor is it clear how Santana’s amendment will be handled now.
Which side asked for the postponement is disputed, since Alcolumbre says he decided alone while the PL says government allies wanted it. It is also unclear whether Lula’s stated support for the 16-year rule for heinous crimes will become a government-backed proposal.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is PEC 18/2025?
It is a government-sponsored constitutional amendment on public security, sent to the Chamber of Deputies in April 2025 and approved there in March this year. It writes the Unified Public Security System into the Constitution and toughens penalties against criminal factions and militias.
Why did Alcolumbre pull the vote?
He said senators should reach an understanding on the amendments and that the discussion could not be hasty. He also said he was heeding critics of how the special calendar was approved, and that the government had not asked for the delay.
Why does the criminal age matter for the vote?
Any amendment that changes the text sends the PEC back to the Chamber of Deputies, which approved it without the criminal-age topic. That would add time before the 25 October runoff.
When will the Senate vote now?
No date has been set in the published reports. Some government allies expect a vote next week, according to Folha.
Does this change policing in Brazil?
No, because the amendment is still a proposal. Policing rules and federal powers change only after Congress promulgates it.
Sources: Agência Senado, withdrawal from the agenda, 15 October 2026 and agenda notice, 14 October 2026; GZH, 15 October 2026; Correio do Povo, 15 October 2026; Folha de S.Paulo, 15 October 2026; Brazilian news portal, Lula interview, 15 October 2026; Diário do Centro do Mundo, 15 October 2026.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief