Daniel Wolfram
Brazilian officials dismiss the claims as “unfounded.”
Donald Trump had some interesting things to say about Brazil’s contentious election. Speaking to reporters on Monday before leaving for Mississippi, the president, without evidence, questioned the election victory of veteran leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
“I didn’t take sides, but it looked like another rigged election,” Trump said, according to Reuters, arguing that the outcome seemed suspicious. “It looked very bad to me.”
Trump also targeted a court decision that kept polling stations open later than planned. “I just think it had a very bad look, the election, the way it was tabulated,” he said. “The extension given was very strange.”
Leaders in Brasília wasted no time responding to the allegations. During an interview with Rede Vanguarda, Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin firmly rejected Trump’s remarks, describing them as “totally wrong” and “unfounded.”
Bolsonaro refused to accept defeat
The race had grown tense after defeated conservative challenger Flávio Bolsonaro refused to concede. The son of former president Jair Bolsonaro wanted the result thrown out because the Supreme Court extended voting by two hours.
In an official statement on Monday, Liberal Party leader Valdemar Costa Neto moved to calm tensions by accepting the runoff count. “We recognize the presidential election results,” Costa Neto said, adding, “But we believe the issues raised need to be properly clarified.”
Reversing the verdict looks nearly impossible. Lula won by over four million votes, and an analysis by Insper professor Pedro Burgos showed that fewer than 35,000 ballots were cast during the extra hours.
The stock market did not like Lula’s victory
Financial trading desks took the leftist victory hard. In a swift reaction, the Brazilian real plunged 8.1 percent against the US dollar, posting its steepest single-day collapse since 2002 as local stocks tumbled.
“The initial selloff could moderate as election-related positions are unwound, but investors will demand convincing fiscal commitments before rebuilding exposure,” said Pantheon Macroeconomics chief Latin America economist Andrés Abadía.
Behind the scenes, Reuters reported that US State Department officials had earlier led a push to help the Bolsonaros regain power.
