DEAFENING SILENCE

Bolsonaro Hasn’t Conceded After Lula’s Election Victory in Brazil

His silence has sparked fears that he may contest the results.

Brazil’s far-right nationalist President Jair Bolsonaro has not yet conceded losing the country’s presidential election, even after hundreds of thousands of Brazilians took to the streets on Sunday night to celebrate former President Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva’s victory. Lula, a leftist who served two terms as president from 2003 to 2010, pulled off a surprise win after being released from prison when corruption convictions were annulled. According to the Supreme Electoral Court, he won 50.9 percent of the vote to Bolsonaro’s 49.1 percent. The 77-year-old will be inaugurated on Jan. 1. Bolsonaro, the country’s first incumbent to lose, left his home on Monday for the presidential palace but has kept mum on the results. His silence has sparked fears that he may contest the results. U.S. President Joe Biden called the election “free, fair and credible.” At his campaign headquarters, Lula vowed to “govern for 215 million Brazilians, and not just for those who voted for me.”