Jair Bolsonaro remains silent. Even on Monday evening, more than 24 hours after his electoral defeat, the Brazilian President had not yet addressed the public to comment on the outcome of the election and to acknowledge the victory of his challenger Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Ministers and advisers to the president have so far failed to persuade Bolsonaro to comment. According to sources close to the president, there is a text in which Bolsonaro acknowledges the election result, but at the same time criticizes alleged injustices during the campaign. The difficulty for Bolsonaro appears to be respecting the democratic process without alienating his supporters.
Bolsonaro’s silence encourages his most radical supporters, who feel cheated of victory and do not want to sit idly by their president’s electoral defeat. Groups of angry citizens and, above all, truck drivers have been blocking a number of connecting roads in the country since Sunday night. On Monday the number of barricades rose to over a hundred. Several states are affected, with most blockades being registered in regions where Bolsonaro has a particularly large number of supporters. An important trunk road between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro is also affected. The aim of the actions were also several bridges and other neuralgic points. The access road to São Paulo International Airport was also blocked late Monday evening. Several flights had to be cancelled.
Constitutional judge orders release of the blockades
The Federal Traffic Police has not yet mastered the situation. In individual videos circulating on social networks, it can also be observed how the police forces tolerate the blockades and fraternize with the protesters. An officer can be heard telling protesters that his only order is to stay with them, prompting a cheer from the crowd. The public prosecutor’s office demanded an explanation from the command of the Federal Traffic Police on Monday. Constitutional judge Alexandre Moraes ordered the blockades to be lifted under threat of heavy fines and threatened the director of the federal traffic police with arrest if he disobeyed the orders. The police department had already made a name for itself on election day when it blocked the passage of buses carrying voters who were being brought to the polling stations from remote regions.
The road blockades and the relative inaction of the security forces are not only causing economic damage to the transport sector, industry and agriculture. They also have a certain potential for political escalation. After Bolsonaro’s election defeat, they are the only expression of rebellion against the result of the election so far. Radical Bolsonaro supporters show solidarity with the truck drivers on social networks and encourage each other to demonstrate as well. Calls for instructions and more coordination are also loud. In polls before the election, around 60 percent of Bolsonaro voters said they would not accept Lula da Silva’s victory. The actions of the truck drivers strengthen their will not to stand idly by and accept Bolsonaro’s election defeat.
On Telegram, a group of extremists called for an action on the esplanade of the ministries in the government district of the capital Brasilia. The news spoke of “armed resistance” and the enlistment of the military. The corresponding discussions on social media prompted the security authorities of the federal district to block access to the government district. There are also fears that truck drivers could enter the government district and set up blockades. In São Paulo, a group demonstrated in front of the military command headquarters on Monday evening, demanding a coup d’état.
Authorities and observers are following the events with concern, fearing that Bolsonaro’s silence is a strategy of “let it happen” and that scenes like those on January 6, 2021 in Washington could be repeated in Brasilia, when radical supporters of then-President Donald Trump entered the Capitol stormed.
In an interview with the Folha de São Paulo newspaper, Donald Trump’s former campaign strategist Steve Bannon said that Lula da Silva’s election victory was stolen and that Bolsonaro should not recognize the election result. Bannon, who has close ties to Bolsonaro’s son Eduardo and to the president himself, questions the reliability of electronic ballot boxes. “There is no possibility that the result is correct.” An examination is necessary, even if it takes months. Until then, Bolsonaro should not accept defeat and remain in office, Bannon said. In the past, Bolsonaro had repeatedly questioned the security of electronic ballot boxes without any basis.
