Some of Bolsonaro’s hardline supporters have called for military intervention to keep Bolsonaro in power and stop leftist President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from taking office. Pro-Bolsonaro truck drivers blocked federal highways. The presidential speech could defuse protests across Brazil by small groups of his supporters, which have begun to stir economic unrest, prompting calls from farmers’ and retail groups for Bolsonaro to concede defeat and begin a transition. Bolsonaro has not made public remarks or spoken to Lula since the match was decided on Sunday afternoon. Close political allies, including his chief of staff Ciro Nogueira and his vice president Hamilton Mourao, have begun reaching out to the Lula camp to discuss a transition. Others, including the president of the lower house of Congress, called on the Bolsonaro government to respect the election result. The powerful agricultural lobby CNA, which represents farmers who were major campaign donors to Bolsonaro, said it was ready for talks with the incoming government, which takes office on January 1. Brazilian supermarket lobby Abras cited supply problems due to the protests and called on Bolsonaro to resolve the situation before store shelves begin to empty. Sao Paulo Governor Rodrigo Garcia ordered hourly fines of 100,000 reais ($20,000) on anyone found blocking highways and sent state police to begin clearing the blockades. On a stretch west of the state capital, police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to break up a demonstration. Meat packers are worried that blocked highways are hurting their ability to move perishable goods, and some may cut production starting Wednesday, an industry source said. The Supreme Court ordered police to lift dozens of blockades that had blocked access to a key grain export port, closed the country’s largest airport and begun affecting the transport of food and fuel. Farias said Bolsonaro would meet with members of the supreme court. But at least one judge has refused to meet with the president without a formal invitation with a clear agenda, according to a judicial source, who asked to remain anonymous. [1/8] Brazilian President and presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro looks on during the second round of the presidential election in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, October 30, 2022. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes Ahead of Sunday’s vote, Bolsonaro repeatedly made baseless claims that the electoral system was open to fraud.

SUPPORTERS DIVIDED

Truckers, who have benefited from Bolsonaro’s diesel cost cuts, are one of the president’s key constituencies and have previously disrupted Brazil’s economy by closing highways. Some truck divers posted videos calling for a military coup to stop Lula from taking office. A doctor in the north of Sao Paulo, Joao Queiroz, who voted for Bolsonaro, said the barricades had disrupted vital supplies for dialysis patients at a hospital in Ribeirao Preto. “I am so angry that Bolsonaro is ending his term with a completely reprehensible attitude that is putting people’s health at risk,” he told Reuters. Protesters also blocked a major highway connecting Rio de Janeiro to Sao Paulo, Brazil’s two largest cities, and the main access road to Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport, the country’s busiest. The airport said it canceled 25 flights before the road reopened Tuesday morning. “We honest Brazilians are against the return of this gang that looted state coffers,” said protesting truck driver Vando Soares, opposed to the return to office of Lula, whose 2003-2010 presidency was marred by a corruption scandal. “We are not moving until this bandit is stopped from taking over as president,” he said. Lula’s victory represents a stunning comeback for the 77-year-old former metallurgist, who spent 19 months in prison on corruption convictions before they were overturned last year. The PRF said protesters partially or fully blocked highways in more than 200 locations as part of protests that spread to 21 of Brazil’s 26 states and the Federal District. They said another 192 roadblocks had been cleared. Reported by Ricardo Brito, Marcela Ayres, Anthony Boadle, Brian Ellsworth, Nayara Figuereido, Gabriel Araujo; Editing by Brad Haynes, Paul Simao and Alistair Bell Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.