'I won't get involved': Trump calls Brazil election ‘very strange’ after Bolsonaro claims presidency from US asylum

US President Donald Trump has described Brazil’s presidential election as “very strange” after Brazilian senator Flávio Bolsonaro declared himself the country’s “true president-elect”, alleged electoral fraud and vowed to lead the opposition from the United States.Asked about Flávio’s claim, Trump said, “I'm not going to make a comment about that...I won't get involved. It was a very strange election, that's for sure.”Flávio, son of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, arrived in the US with his family after leaving Brazil. He has said he would continue his political activities from abroad, alleging that he faced political persecution and that Brazil’s political system was becoming increasingly authoritarian.In a lengthy statement addressed to Brazilians and the international community on Wednesday, Flávio rejected suggestions that he had fled the country to escape scrutiny.“I want to make this clear: I did not flee Brazil; I left for Brazil’s sake,” he wrote, arguing that remaining in the country would have prevented him from exercising political leadership.Flávio alleges electoral fraud, challenges Lula’s victoryFlávio alleged that the October 25 presidential election was rigged in favour of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, claiming that Lula gained more than 10 million votes between the first and second rounds in what he described as a “mathematical impossibility”.He also questioned the extension of voting hours at some locations, accused judicial authorities of exceeding their jurisdiction and argued that alleged campaign violations warranted the annulment of the Lula-Alckmin ticket.The senator claimed that those responsible for what he called a stolen election belonged to a criminal organisation that had established a “tyranny” in Brazil.However, his statement did not provide evidence to establish that electoral fraud had occurred. Brazil’s Liberal Party (PL), which backed his candidacy, had earlier acknowledged the official election result while calling for concerns raised by the campaign to be addressed through political and democratic debate.Vows to lead opposition from USFlávio accused Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court of orchestrating political persecution against him and his father, Jair Bolsonaro. He alleged that judicial action against him could escalate from passport seizure to electronic monitoring, censorship, house arrest and eventual political conviction.He maintained that no arrest warrant had been issued against him and denied committing any crime.The senator said he had brought his family to the US to protect them and would continue his political activities from there. Drawing comparisons with figures such as French wartime leader Charles de Gaulle and Venezuelan opposition leaders, he portrayed his departure as part of a broader struggle for democracy.Addressing lawmakers and governors allied with him, Flávio said he would lead the opposition from the US and speak for supporters who, he claimed, could not freely express themselves in Brazil.He also named senator Rogério Marinho as his candidate for the presidency of the Senate and said he would soon outline a strategy to mobilise the opposition through what he described as peaceful and legitimate means.Flávio’s declaration marks a further escalation in his challenge to Lula’s victory. He had previously called for the election to be annulled, while the PL subsequently acknowledged the result proclaimed by Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.