US President Donald Trump has suggested that Brazil’s presidential runoff election, narrowly won by left-wing incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, may have been rigged.
According to the official tally, Lula received 51.79% of the vote on Sunday, while his right-wing rival, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, secured 48.21%.
“It looked terrible to me,” Trump told reporters on Monday. “I didn’t take sides, but it looked like another rigged election, frankly.”
Asked whether he planned to “do something” about the result, Trump replied: “I’m not running Brazil. I’m running the U.S. I like Lula. I get along with him very well. I just think it had a very bad look – the election, the way it was tabulated.”
Bolsonaro announced on election night that he would seek to have the results annulled, accusing “Lula’s allies” in the government of foul play.
Q: Do you want to do something about the election in Brazil? Trump: I'm not running Brazil. I'm running the U.S. I like Lula. I get along with him very well, but the extension given was very strange. https://t.co/Sl1HUjiWde
In the first round on October 4, Bolsonaro led with 47% of the vote to Lula’s 45%. Some analysts suggested that Bolsonaro could win the runoff by attracting supporters of other right-wing candidates.
Bolsonaro’s father, Jair Bolsonaro, who served as Brazil’s president from 2019 to 2022, is serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup to remain in power after losing the 2022 election to Lula. He has denied wrongdoing, describing the case as politically motivated.
Lula previously served two terms as president from 2003 to 2010. He was barred from running in the 2018 election following a corruption conviction, which was overturned in 2021, allowing him to run again in 2022. Lula has maintained his innocence, accusing his political opponents of using the judicial system against him.
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