Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians have taken to the streets and surrounded military barracks to protest the legitimacy of their election results.
President-elect Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva, 76, reportedly won in a tight race last week.
But the results are being contested by millions of people who suspect the election wasn’t fair.
da Silva received just over 60 million votes, the most in the country’s history. However, his victory was narrow; he reportedly won 50.90% of the vote compared to Bolsonaro’s 49.10%.
Podcast host Majiid Nawaz said on Twitter that de Silva’s victory celebration showed a few hundred supporters scattered on the streets, compared to the hundreds of thousands of citizens protesting the results and supporting Bolsonaro.
Protestors are pictured holding signs saying “#Brazilwasstolen.”
Critics are calling it the tyranny of Brazil’s judicial system. The supreme court is threatening criminal charges against people who continue to challenge the legitimacy of the election.
According to the New York Times, Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes ordered agents to raid homes and freeze bank accounts after private messages were leaked of businessmen indicating support for a coup.
“The Congressional candidate in Brazil who received the most votes nationwide is Bolsonaro supporter Nikolas Ferreira, 26 (1.5m votes). The 3rd-highest is Bolsonaro ally Carla Zambelli. Both are now banned from social media due to a judge’s ruling they’re spreading disinformation,” tweeted Glenn Greenwald.
The same judge reportedly oversaw the election results.
