The president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, assured his American counterpart, Joe Biden, on Thursday that, when he has to leave the country’s presidency, he will do so “in a democratic manner.”
“This year we have elections in Brazil and we want clean, reliable and auditable elections so that there are no doubts (…) I was elected for democracy and I am sure that, when I leave the Government, it will also be in a democratic way,” said the head of state. Brazil on the elections scheduled for October 2, according to a White House statement released after a bilateral meeting between the two leaders.
Bolsonaro’s statement, made at the IX Summit of the Americas, comes after the Brazilian president questioned the legitimacy of the elections on several occasions in recent months, even questioning the reliability of electronic voting machines and denouncing the start of fraud in 2018, when it won scrutiny
Before the meeting with his American counterpart, Bolsonaro once again questioned the electoral system in Brazil, as well as that of the United States.
“It is the American people who say it [que houve fraude nas eleições nos EUA]. [Donald] Trump was doing very well. And we have many things that made us doubt (…) We do not want that to happen in Brazil”, said the Brazilian president.
Hours later, after the meeting between Biden and Bolsonaro, the US president left a message of confidence in the Brazilian electoral system: “Brazil is a wonderful place, (…) because of its vibrant and inclusive democracy and its strong electoral institutions.”
The White House has previously defended the reliability of the elections in Brazil. “We have been very forthright in expressing great confidence in the ability of Brazilian institutions to hold free and fair elections with adequate safeguards against fraud,” US Western Hemisphere Officer Juan Gonzales said in a statement.
The US also urged the Brazilian government not to undermine confidence in the electoral process, “especially since there were no signs of fraud in the previous elections,” the White House emphasized.
Source: Observadora
