Elections: blank and spoiled ballots are discarded during the count

Contrary to what many think, blank and null votes do not interfere in the counting process, nor do they annul an election. According to the Brazilian Superior Electoral Court (TSE), they have no value, are discarded during the counting process and are considered only as statistics.

In the Federal Constitution, it is foreseen that the elected candidate is the one who obtains the majority of valid votes, that is, excluding blank and null votes, which are considered invalid. Therefore, only votes for a candidate or a party are counted.

“One of the main myths of the electoral process refers to an alleged interference of blank and null votes in the electoral result. Being considered null, these votes do not interfere in any way, nor benefit any candidate”, informed the TSE.

The court also reminds that the votes for each position are independent. This means that voters may, for example, vote only for President of the Republic and choose to vote blank for the other offices. In this case, the vote for president would be valid even against the other blank votes.

“Many fake news claim that, in this very example, the vote for president would be annulled, since it would be considered a ‘partial vote’. That simply does not exist,” the Court reinforced.

Even if the majority of the electors annul or vote blank, the election will not be cancelled, since only valid votes are considered in the election.

The Constitution, however, foresees the need to schedule a new election if the nullity reaches more than half of the votes in the country and the Electoral Tribunal finds fraud.

Abstention

Data from the Electoral Justice show that abstention or non-attendance of voters at the polls generates economic damage to the country. In the 2010 general elections, the impact was R$ 195.2 million, considering both rounds. The figure is based on the average cost of voting in that year’s elections, calculated at R$ 3.63 per voter.

“Although voting is not mandatory, the Electoral Justice is legally designated to prepare the elections to serve the totality of those who can vote,” the court reported.