A senior State Department official said Tuesday that Flávio Bolsonaro and his family will be granted U.S. visas after his weekend loss to incumbent Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in a hotly contested race that bucked a trend of conservative electoral results in Latin America.

Lula's government recently announced the lowest Amazon deforestation rate on record. However, he faces a Congress dominated by the far right and agribusiness interests, which often back measures weakening environmental protections.

In a closely watched election, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated right-wing and Trump-aligned challenger Flávio Bolsonaro. Transport and weather disruptions in parts of Brazil led to a chaotic final stretch at the polls. Bolsonaro is refusing to concede, and President Trump called the outcome "rigged." Stephanie Sy reports.

Brazilian voters have denied Latin America's resurgent right its ultimate prize. Lula's reelection limits U.S. President Trump's influence in the region and cements Brazil as a counterweight to Washington.

Bolsonaro quickly refused to concede defeat and asked for the election results to be annulled after an evening of chaos at some polling places that followed a last-minute decision to extend voting by two hours.

With 100% of the vote counted, Brazil's electoral court announced that the soon to be 81-year-old Lula held an unassailable lead of nearly 4.4 million votes over opponent Flávio Bolsonaro.

This weekend, voters in Brazil head to the polls in a high-stakes presidential runoff that could reshape that country's political future. Will Brazil join a rightward shift across parts of the Americas, or stick with its left-wing leadership? Voting is compulsory for most adults, and the race has deepened political divisions across the country. Stephanie Sy reports.