Rigging claim in Brazil election

Press, 20 November 1982, Page 8

Rigging claim in Brazil election

NZPA-Reuter Rio de Janeiro - As the Government party looked set for election wins in 12 of Brazil’s 23 states, a leading opponent of the mili- . ary-led Government; has alleged vote-rigging against .. him. \ A Socialist, Leonel Brizola, the most 1 , prominent Left- 7 wing candidate in the ballot, injected tension into the count yestefday with .charges.. of election fraud in the key,; Rio de Janeiro state. Partial unofficial returns for the 22 state governor-; ships contested indicated that victory fo't the Govern-.; ment’s Social DemocraticParty in 12 and the Opposi-:S tion in six, including the biggest, Sao Paulis. Tallies in the other four were'still too close for predictionsA The elections, a vital stage; in Brazil’s return \to full' democracy, also involved all 479 Federal deputies' anyone third of senators, as wdl as state assemblies , and local officials. \ Mr Brizola, a long-time foe of the . military, told' reporters that the slow court in Rio and widely varying unofficial tallies reported bj the news media, had created suspicions of fraud and jnanipulation of the results. “It is highly probable that given the disturbed climate that has been created in Rio de Janeiro and the lack of information, a fraud is being perpetrated,” he said.