Bolsonaro refuses to accept election defeat

Right-wing Brazilian senator Flávio Bolsonaro has said it is “impossible” for him to accept the result of the presidential election after losing to incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. His legal team will file a petition seeking to annul the election, he said.

Flávio said he could not accept his defeat to Lula under any circumstances. Four years ago, his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, also refused to accept his defeat to Lula and was later convicted over an attempted coup.

Flávio cited a Supreme Court justice’s decision to extend voting hours as a reason for rejecting the result.

He had also sought an extension of voting hours but said Justice Cristiano Zanin’s decision to extend voting from 5pm to 7pm was unacceptable, likening it to changing the rules in the middle of a game.

Flávio alleged that the decision came from Lula’s allies on the Supreme Court, noting that Zanin had previously served as Lula’s lawyer and was appointed by him.

Zanin ordered the extension shortly after the scheduled closing time of 5pm.

Earlier, Justice Kassio Nunes Marques, appointed by Jair Bolsonaro and currently head of the electoral court, had delayed ruling for several hours on Lula’s request. During the election campaign, Marques had faced allegations of favouring Flávio.