Bolsonaro’s Claim of Vote Fraud Raises Tension in Brazil
Bolsonaro Says Fraud Kept Him From 1st-Round Brazil Election Win
(Bloomberg) -- Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro claimed that election fraud robbed him of an outright victory in the 2018 presidential vote, stirring political tensions just a few days before anti-Congress protests scheduled for March 15.
“In my understanding, there was fraud” in the election, Bolsonaro said at an event in Miami, according to a video posted on Twitter by local TV station Record. He said he would soon share “proof” of his allegations, but has so far presented none.
Bolsonaro is currently in Florida, where he met with President Donald Trump over the weekend, and is scheduled to return to Brazil later on Tuesday. Political pressure has been building up in the country since he shared a video urging his supporters to turn out for nationwide pro-government, anti-Congress rallies on Sunday. Disagreement over budget funds is also hurting relations with the legislature, which is currently debating a set of investor-friendly bills.
Brazil’s electoral court, known as TSE, said the country’s electronic ballots are internationally recognized as reliable and efficient and that no case of fraud has ever been proven since the system was adopted over two decades ago.
“If there’s any evidence of irregularity, the TSE will act with speed and transparency to investigate,” the court said in a statement.
Bolsonaro’s office didn’t provide additional comments when contacted by Bloomberg. The Supreme Court didn’t respond to a request for comment either.
Read more: Bolsonaro Call for Protests Sours Relations With Brazil Congress
March Protests
Bolsonaro, elected in October 2018 after a runoff vote, continues to portray himself as an outsider who’s fighting against Brazil’s political establishment -- a narrative that resonates with his supporters on social media. He has repeatedly called for Brazil to drop electronic voting systems and bring back paper ballots.
In his remarks on Monday, he said the March protests are not against Congress, but rather in support of Brazil, and added that they could lose strength if lawmakers give up power over a portion of the nation’s budget, local media reported.
“We’re not going to fall into that trap,” said Marcelo Ramos, deputy leader of the largest coalition of parties in Brazil’s lower house. “I don’t want to talk about electronic ballot, I want to talk about measures to face the crisis, coronavirus, unemployment.”
Bolsonaro needs lawmaker support to pass economic reforms as his administration confronts global headwinds and signs of a souring domestic recovery with limited chances for stimulus.
--With assistance from Rachel Gamarski, Murilo Fagundes and Julia Leite.
To contact the reporters on this story: Samy Adghirni in Brasilia Newsroom at sadghirni@bloomberg.net;Simone Iglesias in Brasília at spiglesias@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Walter Brandimarte at wbrandimarte@bloomberg.net, Matthew Malinowski
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