The president Donald Trump described the electoral system of the United States as "corrupt" on Monday, comparing it to the speed with which Brazil announced the results of its presidential first round, held on Sunday with over 125 million voters.
The American leader posted the message on his Truth Social network, indicating that the Brazilian results were known on the same day the polls closed. "In Detroit, Philadelphia, California, and many other cities and states in the United States, the results - with much smaller numbers - often take weeks to be tampered with... I mean, calculated," he wrote.
The publication, however, faced an initial stumble: in its original version, Trump confused Brazil with India, attributing the Brazilian elections to that Asian country. The error was corrected hours later, but it had already been widely ridiculed in the media of India, Brazil, and the United States, given that India did not hold any presidential elections that day and, moreover, its head of state is not elected by direct popular vote.
Once the text was corrected, Trump concluded his post with a striking statement: "Voting in America is CORRUPT!"
The contrast chosen by Trump is intentional. Brazil has been using an electronic voting system administered by the Tribunal Superior Electoral (TSE) since the 1990s, which transmits results digitally and automatically at the close of polling stations, allowing for the publication of definitive data within a few hours. In the United States, on the other hand, each state establishes its own counting rules, leading to significant differences in publication times.
In key states like Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Georgia, or North Carolina, the results are usually known with a high level of scrutiny within about 24 hours, while in others, the total count can extend for weeks, especially if the margins are close or recounts are requested.
Trump's statements are not new. Since the 2020 elections, which were won by the Democrat Joe Biden, the president has claimed without evidence that there was massive fraud. These accusations were dismissed by dozens of courts and state auditors, and they preceded the assault on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
In the Brazilian elections that prompted the comment, Flávio Bolsonaro defeated Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in the first round, with approximately 47% of the votes compared to 45% for the incumbent president. Since neither achieved an absolute majority, there will be a second round on October 25.
Flávio Bolsonaro, senator and son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, met with Trump at the White House on May 26 and promised to integrate Brazil into the "Shield of the Americas" if he won the elections. His father is disqualified until 2030 due to his leadership in a coup conspiracy in 2022.
The elections in Brazil also represent bad news for the Cuban regime, which is closely watching the rise of Bolsonaro, whose platform is openly against the leftist dictatorships in the region.
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