Da Silva, better known as Lula, narrowly beat Bolsonaro in Sunday’s runoff, garnering 50.9 percent support compared to 49.1 percent for the former army chief. While Lula struck a conciliatory tone – pledging to “govern for 215 million Brazilians, and not just for those who voted for me” – and world leaders congratulated him on his victory, Bolsonaro has yet to comment publicly or on social media . Bolsonaro has spent months falsely claiming Brazil’s election system was vulnerable to fraud, fueling fears he planned to challenge the results if he loses to Lula, as most Brazilian polls had predicted. Reporting from the capital Brasilia, Al Jazeera’s Teresa Bo said on Monday there was “absolute silence” at the presidential palace, where she said Bolsonaro had arrived very early in the morning. The presidential entourage with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is seen at the Alvorada Palace in Brasilia on October 31, 2022 [Adriano Machado/Reuters] “He has not admitted defeat. He did not invite President-elect Lula da Silva,” Bo reported. In the past, Bolsonaro has also expressed admiration for Brazil’s former military regime, which ruled from 1964 to 1985, raising fears around the election campaign. But Bo said the heads of both chambers of Brazil’s Congress accepted Lula’s victory, allaying concerns about Bolsonaro’s response. “The director of the election tribunal said he spoke to the president and [said] that he is expected to accept the results,” he said. “But nobody knows when that will happen. We hear, however, that some of his ministers advise him to acknowledge this result.’ Several media outlets reported that Bolsonaro is expected to speak on Monday afternoon. Meanwhile, truckers and other protesters blocked highways in several Brazilian states on Monday in an apparent protest against the defeat of Bolsonaro, who was backed by big business interests. Burning tires, trucks and cars blocked many points in the western rural state of Mato Grosso, which heavily supports Bolsonaro, a company that runs a highway in the state. Supporters of Bolsonaro block the BR-251 highway, in Planaltina, Brazil, October 31 [Diego Vara/Reuters] Road blockages were also seen in at least five other states, including Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, according to local media. Lula criticized Bolsonaro on Sunday night for not recognizing the result. “Any other place in the world, the defeated president would have called me to acknowledge his defeat,” the president-elect said in his victory speech to a sea of euphoric Red fans in Sao Paulo. Lula also promised to work for “peace and unity” in the divided nation. “I will govern for 215 million Brazilians, and not just for those who voted for me,” he said. “There are no two Brazils. We are one country, one people, one great nation.” A senior official in Bolsonaro’s campaign said the president went unaccompanied from his official residence to the presidential palace on Monday morning, but was refusing meetings and phone calls even from his closest aides and political associates. His three sons, who are very active on social media, have also been completely silent on the radio and have not published anything since Sunday’s defeat was declared by Brazil’s electoral authority. For his part, Lula met on Monday with Argentine President Alberto Fernandez, who flew to Sao Paulo to meet the newly elected leader. Fernandez had hailed “a new era for the history of Latin America – an era of hope and future that begins today.” United States President Joe Biden also spoke to Lula to congratulate him on his victory. “President Biden praised the strength of Brazil’s democratic institutions following free, fair and credible elections,” the White House said in a statement describing the talks. “The two leaders discussed the strong relationship between the United States and Brazil and pledged to continue working as partners to address common challenges, such as combating climate change, ensuring food security, promoting inclusion and democracy, and the management of regional migration’. Meeting today with friend @alferdez. The nation of Argentina is a brotherly country and I am happy that we are returning to friendship. Let’s strengthen our cooperation for a better future for our people🇧🇷🇦🇷 📸: @ricardostuckert pic.twitter.com/2w5hVqzQma — Lula 13 (@LulaOfficial) October 31, 2022
