While Brazil's upcoming municipal elections will not substantially change the status quo at the local level, they will kick-start the race for the presidency in 2026. This process will see the consolidation of right-wing leaders and a stronger government push for higher spending. Brazil will hold elections on Oct. 6 for mayors and city councilors in all of its 5,569 municipalities. Mayoral runoff elections will be held on Oct. 27 in cities with populations exceeding 200,000 where no candidate receives more than 50% of valid votes in the initial round. The country has 15,537 candidates for mayor, while 431,512 candidates will run for a city council seat. This is the lowest number of candidates since 2012, and nearly 103,000 fewer than in 2020, after a new law imposed a lower cap for the number of candidates each party or federation of parties can present.