Lula Wins Brazil Vote, Trump Calls Disgrace

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BRAZIL · US POLITICS

President Donald Trump called the Brazil vote “a disgrace” on Thursday 29 October 2026 and said he will talk to President Lula. He gave no date for a call and would not say who he considers the legitimate winner.

It matters to US readers because Brazil is Latin America’s largest economy and a major US trade partner. Trump’s words come five days before the US midterm elections on Tuesday 3 November.

What Happened

Trump spoke about the Brazil vote to reporters on Thursday morning, 29 October, before boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. He was leaving on a campaign trip ahead of the US midterm elections.

Asked about Lula, Trump said he would “talk to him” and added, “I think the election was a disgrace in Brazil.” Asked who he considers the legitimate winner, he said he did not want to comment right now.

He also called the Brazil vote “a very great embarrassment to the people of Brazil” and said its market had gone “through the floor”. The remarks followed his claim on Monday 26 October that the vote looked rigged.

Trump said he “watched the election” and “didn’t take sides”, and that he “let it be”. He added that he was asked not to take sides by “the president, the current president”, meaning Lula.

The Planned Call With Lula

Trump gave no date, time or format for the conversation with Lula, and no call had been announced by Friday morning, 30 October. Lula is Brazil’s left-wing president, who won the Brazil vote and a fourth term on Sunday 25 October by more than four million votes.

Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, the conservative runner-up and son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, has refused to accept the loss. He reached Miami on Wednesday 28 October and called himself “the true elected president of Brazil”.

Brazil’s Reaction So Far

Brazil’s government had not answered Thursday’s remarks on the Brazil vote by Friday morning, 30 October. On Monday 26 October, Vice President Geraldo Alckmin called Trump’s claim that the vote looked rigged “totally wrong”.

Alckmin said no country should interfere in another’s politics, and he praised Brazil’s electronic voting. Our report on Trump’s rigged-election claim has the full exchange.

Lula spoke on Tuesday 27 October outside the Alvorada Palace, his official residence, and called Flávio Bolsonaro’s departure from Brazil “shameful”. He said Flávio should have handed in his passport, and he did not mention Trump.

Why It Matters

The White House has not said whether it recognises Lula’s win, and Trump again declined to say so on Thursday. Trump also named Brazil at a Texas rally on Tuesday 27 October, as our report on the Texas rally describes.

The vote also touches trade, because Brazil is one of the largest trading partners of the United States in Latin America. A conversation between the two presidents is the usual first step toward any change in that trade relationship.

The Brazil vote was run by the Superior Electoral Court, the body that organises elections and certifies results in Brazil. In his Thursday remarks Trump named no specific irregularity.

What Prediction Markets Say

Polymarket, where users bet real money, gave 24.5% on Friday 30 October (3:36 a.m. ET) that Trump speaks to Lula by 31 October. About US$28,000 has traded on that line, and the price rose 6.5 points in 24 hours.

A 24.5% price means traders see a call within two days as possible but unlikely. These are bets, not polls, and the price can move within minutes of any announcement.

Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.

What It Means for You

If you hold Brazilian shares listed in New York, known as ADRs (American Depositary Receipts), expect swings until Washington and Brasília settle their relationship. If you trade with Brazil or buy Brazilian goods such as coffee, watch for any announcement after a Trump-Lula call.

If you plan to travel to Brazil, nothing changes for visas or flights because of Trump’s remarks. The result also stays in place, since Lula remains president under Brazilian law.

What Is Not Known

It is not known when Trump will speak to Lula, or whether Lula wants the call on those terms. The White House has not said whether the United States will recognise the Brazil vote result.

Trump named no specific irregularity to back up his word “disgrace”, and he did not say what he meant by it. Brazil’s government has not said how it will answer, and Flávio Bolsonaro’s plans in the United States are unclear.

More: Brazil news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did Trump say about Brazil’s election?

On 29 October 2026 Trump said he thought the election was “a disgrace in Brazil”. He also called it a very great embarrassment to the Brazilian people and named no specific irregularity.

Will Trump speak to Lula?

Trump said “I’ll talk to him” but gave no date or format. No call had been announced by 30 October.

Does the United States recognise Lula’s win?

The White House has not said. Trump told reporters on 29 October that he did not want to comment right now on who the legitimate winner is.

Sources: White House, remarks and statements of the President, 29 October 2026, 29 October 2026; Superior Electoral Court (TSE), official results of the 25 October 2026 runoff, 25 October 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief

Brazil runoff, Sunday, October 25: When is the Brazil runoff election. Latest: Brazil runoff polls, Flávio 51%, Lula 49%.