'I'll organise the Opposition': Bolsonaro vows to challenge Lula government after defeat, Trump calls vote 'rigged'

Flavio Bolsonaro said on Monday that he would lead the opposition to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government, a day after refusing to concede defeat to the incumbent in the presidential election. "To withstand the chaos, I'm going to organize the opposition," the right-wing senator and son of former president Jair Bolsonaro said.

Trump calls Brazil election 'rigged' after ally's defeat

US President Donald Trump on Monday described Brazil's election as ‘rigged’ and ‘so corrupt’ after Lula defeated his right-wing ally Flavio Bolsonaro. The 45-year-old son of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro has called for the election result to be annulled, challenging an outcome that denied Trump the political shift in South America he had hoped for. "It looked terrible to me," Trump told reporters as he left Washington for a campaign rally ahead of next week's US midterm elections. “I didn't take sides but it looked like another rigged election frankly... it was a terrible look for the world.”

An ally of the Bolsonaro family, Trump had appeared to favour Flavio's victory. The Brazilian senator had pledged to join a growing group of conservative Latin American leaders seeking closer ties with Washington. "Elections have to be indisputable and it looked very bad to me," Trump continued. "I didn't endorse anybody or anything, but I watched the election and it looked so corrupt, so terrible."

However, Trump declined to say whether he would take any action in response to the Brazilian election result. "I'm not running for Brazil, I'm running for the USA," Trump said. "I like Lula, I get along with him very well. I just thought it was a very bad look, the way it was tabulated -- with the extension."

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Bolsonaro says Supreme Court justice barred him from leaving Brazil

Flavio Bolsonaro said on Monday that a Supreme Court justice had prohibited him from leaving Brazil, one day after his defeat in the presidential election and his refusal to concede to Lula. The senator received 48.2% of the vote, compared with 51.8% for incumbent President Lula. "I was served with an order to hand over my passports and I am also banned from leaving the country," he said in a video posted to Instagram. Bolsonaro described the move as a clear attempt to intimidate me.

The senator is under investigation over alleged corruption and money laundering related to the financing of a biopic about his father. He has denied any wrongdoing. The 45-year-old said the passport order stemmed from comments by his brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, a former lawmaker based in the United States, who had said Flavio would have to leave Brazil if he lost the election. "I never said that," the defeated candidate insisted in the Instagram video.