Trump questions Lula’s Brazil victory without evidence as markets react to election result

US President Donald Trump has questioned the legitimacy of Brazil’s presidential election, saying it looked “like another rigged election” after left-wing incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeated right-wing challenger Flávio Bolsonaro. Trump provided no evidence to support the allegation. Speaking to reporters, Trump said he had not taken sides but described the vote and its tabulation as a bad or “terrible” look.

In a separate post on Truth Social, he offered $1 million for information about alleged voter fraud in past US elections or the 2026 midterm elections, saying payment would follow the arrest and conviction of those responsible. Lula defeated Bolsonaro by more than four million votes. Bolsonaro initially refused to concede and said the result should be annulled, citing the Supreme Court’s decision to extend voting by two hours.

He later said he would organise the opposition. He also said he had been ordered to surrender his passports after visiting his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest, while denying that he planned to flee Brazil. An analysis by Insper professor Pedro Burgos found that fewer than 35,000 votes—about 0.03 per cent of the total—were cast during the additional two hours.

Brazil’s Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin called Trump’s remarks “totally wrong” and “unfounded” in a television interview reported by India Today. Trump had not publicly endorsed Flávio Bolsonaro before the election, although India Today said Reuters had previously reported that US State Department officials led a campaign to return the Bolsonaro family to power. Trump had welcomed Flávio Bolsonaro to the White House earlier in the year, according to Euronews, and later described him as a young politician who loved Brazil.

The election result challenged expectations. Lula had trailed Bolsonaro in the first round but won enough support in the runoff. Pollsters attributed the outcome partly to higher-than-expected turnout and a stronger social-media campaign by Lula’s side.

During the campaign, Lula highlighted his record on poverty, inequality, unemployment, illiteracy and deforestation. Investors reacted sharply to the result. Brazil’s real fell 8.1 per cent against the US dollar, its largest single-day decline since 2002, while the country’s stock exchange recorded its steepest one-day fall since 2020.

Andres Abadia, Latin America chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said the initial sell-off could ease as election positions were unwound, but investors would want convincing fiscal commitments before rebuilding exposure. Lula’s fourth presidential term is expected to face legislative obstacles because Congress has moved further to the right. Conservative candidates made gains in the first round, leaving Bolsonaro allies with significant influence.

That could complicate Lula’s efforts to advance his programme even after a victory that interrupted a broader series of right-wing gains across South America. Trump’s comments also carry domestic political significance. His Republican Party is seeking to retain power in the US midterm elections, while the administration has promoted a recent wave of right-wing victories in South America.

Brazil’s electoral authorities, however, were defended by the country’s vice-president, and the reports provide no independent evidence supporting Trump’s fraud claim.