Bolsonaro’s silence after losing the Brazilian presidential election

CNN
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After more than a day Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Brazil 2022 winner announced Presidential electionIncumbent Jair Bolsonaro has not publicly acknowledged his loss.

The president’s delay in giving up Sunday’s race contributed to fears that he would not cooperate with the transition of power, amid sporadic protests by his supporters. Prior to the vote, Bolsonaro and some of his allies made baseless allegations about election fraud and unfair treatment by the press.

“Nowhere else in the world would the president who lost have called me now and agreed,” Lula da Silva told his supporters Sunday night, explaining that he was “partly happy, partly concerned” about the transfer of power.

“He hasn’t called yet, I don’t know if he will or not, and I don’t know if he will concede,” he said.

But whether or not to publicly abdicate, experts say, is already out of the hands of the outgoing president.

It is the Supreme Electoral Court of Brazil that officially certifies the election results and reports them to the Senate, the Chamber of Deputies and the State Assemblies.

An Electoral Court press official told CNN that the results of the vote had already been deemed correct, since the court announced the result on Sunday. He said that a court session at a later time will officially confirm the victory, but no date has been set for that yet.

Electoral Tribunal President Alexandre de Moraes on Sunday personally called Lula da Silva and Bolsonaro to inform them of the results and congratulate them on their participation in the democratic process, according to a press release from the court.

De Moraes also said he did not see much scope for contesting the election. “The result has been announced and accepted, and those elected will assume their duties on January 1,” he said in the statement.

The President of the Brazilian Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco, publicly congratulated Lula da Silva and his supporters, as well as the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Arthur Lira – a close ally of Bolsonaro.

Foreign leaders from around the world quickly expressed their support for Lula da Silva’s victory.

“I congratulate Luis Inacio Lula da Silva on his election to be the next president of Brazil after free, fair and credible elections,” US President Joe Biden said after Sunday’s vote.

Russian President Vladimir Putin sent his congratulations in a message carried by Russia’s state news agency TASS, adding: “The results of the vote confirm your supreme political authority.”

Diplomatic work for the president-elect is already underway, with Lula da Silva meeting Argentine President Alberto Fernandez – one of the first foreign leaders to congratulate him – in Sao Paulo on Monday.

At least twice before, Brazilian leaders refused to participate in the transfer of power.

At the start of the Brazilian Republic in the late 19th century, military marshal Floriano Peixoto did not attend the inauguration of his successor, Prudente de Moraes.

Almost a century later, the last unelected military president, João Battista Figueiredo, refused to install his successor, José Sarney.

In both cases, the boycott was largely symbolic. The same would be true if Bolsonaro refused to abdicate the presidency in a public statement, according to legal expert Augusto de Arruda Botelho.

“Not recognizing the result is not a start from a political point of view, because at the end of the day, it is the electoral court that hands the power to the winner of the election,” he told CNN.

“[Bolsonaro] He can kick and scream as much as he wants.”

Plus, it’s in Bolsonaro’s political interest to show good sport, political scientist Camila Rocha told CNN.

Rocha’s research shows that refusing to compromise would damage Bolsonaro’s public image among his supporters. “Even Bolsonaro’s staunch supporters, like those I met last year in Santa Catarina for my research, say that if Bolsonaro loses, he will have to accept the outcome,” she told CNN.

“So it is very clear that if Bolsonaro refuses to accept Lula’s victory, it could have a negative effect even among his supporters. He will surely be seen as a bad loser.”

However, since Sunday evening, pro-Bolsonaro and other pro-Bolsonaro truck drivers have blocked roads and highways, causing significant delays and disruption in at least 19 states across the country, according to CNN Brazil affiliate.

So far, roadblocks have occurred in states including São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, Minas Gerais and Amazonas.

CNN crew said access to Sao Paulo International Airport was disrupted as nearly 100 protesters blocked a highway leading to the airport. The crew said some people left their taxis and started walking on the side of the highway to get to the station. Very few cars were parked outside Terminal 3 at the airport, indicating that most cars were stuck in the blockade.

Sao Paulo International Airport told passengers to check the status of their battles in a tweet noting that getting to the airport terminals could be difficult due to the protest. A number of flights have been postponed, according to an airline agent who spoke to CNN. The agent told CNN that the pilots and crew were unable to reach the airport because the blockade caused significant delays at the airport.

Some police officers on the road to the airport told CNN they were afraid to anger the protesters and were trying to avoid confrontation.

Many of the protesters made it clear that they did not believe the election result.

“We have a president who won the polls and they cheated the ballot boxes and put the other candidate ahead and we’re against that,” said Luis Vallejo, a Bolsonaro fan.

Another, Yurandir Santos, said that even if Bolsonaro accepted the results, “people will not accept it.”

In the first public comments by any member of Bolsonaro’s inner circle since his election defeat, Bolsonaro’s son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, took to Twitter on Monday afternoon to thank his father’s supporters, urging them not to “give in”.

“Thank you to everyone who helped us save patriotism, who prayed and took to the streets and gave their sweat for the country that works and gave Bolsonaro the biggest vote of his life! Let’s raise our heads and let’s not give up our Brazil!” he wrote.

“God is in charge!” he added.

The Federal Supreme Court later ordered that all public roads and highways be cleared.

The order came after Brazil’s National Transportation Federation (CNT) said the roadblocks had caused “inconvenience and damage to the entire community,” and said the protests should be categorized as “anti-democratic” and potential violations of the democratic rule of law.

As of 8 a.m. ET, the Brazilian Federal Police said its officers had removed at least 246 roadblocks on federal highways in the country, but a number of highways remained closed.

Meanwhile, Bolsonaro supporters have called for a protest Tuesday in front of federal government buildings in Brasilia at 2 p.m. ET.