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The US president questioned the vote count after Lula narrowly defeated Jair Bolsonaro’s son in the runoff
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
— Clash Report (@clashreport) October 26, 2026In 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.
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