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Thousands of supporters of President Jair Bolsonaro have called on the military to keep the far-right leader in power, even as his government says it is willing to hand the reins to leftist rival Luis Inacio Lula da Silva .
The president’s supporters gathered in the rain outside the Rio de Janeiro Eastern Military Command, one of the army’s eight regional headquarters, many of them raising clenched fists in the air, waving the Brazilian flag and singing the national anthem.
Some chanted “Armed Forces, save Brazil!” and “Unite, the people will never be defeated!”
Meanwhile, truckers who have been setting up roadblocks across the country for days to protest Mr Bolsonaro’s defeat remain in effect despite a Supreme Court order to remove them.
The protests came amid international recognition of Mr da Silva’s victory and Brazil’s top court advising Mr Bolsonaro to accept Sunday’s election results. Cabinet members, governors-elect and evangelical leaders who have been strident supporters of Mr Bolsonaro are now offering overtures to the incoming leftist government.
Experts say the military has played a big role under Bolsonaro but has remained silent in the month since the first round of elections, suggesting the military may distance itself from the former army captain.
“In a democracy, the armed forces have no say in the electoral process,” said Eduardo Monjoz Swartman, president of the Brazilian Association for Defense Studies. “This kind of silence is desirable.”
Mr. Bolsonaro lost to Mr. da Silva in a tight race, with 49.1 percent of the vote, compared with 50.9 percent for da Silva. It was the fiercest presidential race since Brazil returned to democracy in 1985 and marked the first election defeat for Mr Bolsonaro in his 34-year political career.
The outgoing president spent nearly two days addressing the nation, amid speculation that he might object to the result after repeatedly questioning the reliability of the country’s electoral system ahead of the election.
In his speech at the presidential residence on Tuesday, which lasted less than two minutes, he made no concessions to Mr. da Silva but said he would continue to abide by the constitution. He also encouraged his supporters to protest, as long as they remained peaceful.
Immediately after, his chief of staff told reporters that Mr Bolsonaro had authorized him to begin the process of transferring power, while later in the day the president reportedly told Supreme Court members he was fighting Mr Da Silva’s campaign has ended.
“It’s over. So, let’s move forward,” he said, according to Supreme Court Justice Luiz Edson Fachin, who met with the conservative leader privately. Mr. Fachin made the remarks in a video broadcast by Brazilian news media.
Like former US President Donald Trump, whom Bolsonaro publicly admires, he claims electronic voting machines are prone to fraud. He gave no evidence, even when ordered to do so by the electoral court.
Many of his supporters are also questioning the result, with truckers supporting the president setting up hundreds of blockades across the country to protest the result. On Wednesday morning, highway police said they had removed 630 barriers and more than 150 remained.
Protesters set tires on fire at a roadblock in the state of São Paulo on Tuesday. Long queues of cars can be seen winding down the highway. In the Itabole region of Rio de Janeiro state, reporters saw the truck driver kneeling in front of police and refusing to evacuate.
Sao Paulo Governor Rodrigo Garcia said on Tuesday that the time for negotiations was over and he would not rule out the use of force to remove obstacles.
But Bolsonaro’s supporters continued to boycott. Users on social media, including multiple Telegram and WhatsApp chat groups, have called for the military to take to the streets or to dissolve Congress and the Supreme Court to keep the president in office.
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