Brazil’s Bolsonaro signals cooperation with transfer of power, but does not concede election defeat
Brazil is expected to announce a partnership agreement to transfer its power to the president-elect, Jair Bolsonaro, after his victory, according to officials.
The deal, while keeping the president in the role of ‘cooperating head of state’ until 2020, indicates that both sides will now “work on getting to know each other”, according to a statement on Monday.
That would likely mean Bolsonaro working closely with the administration of incoming president-elect Jair Bolsonaro. The US and European Union have already signalled an interest in supporting the new Brazilian government.
Brazil says the deal would only involve a short-term solution, saying: “The agreement to be signed is not a precedent for transfer of power. It is a simple technical procedure.”
Brazil has said the agreement would last for a year, and only cover the period between now and the end of 2019, with a presidential election possible in 2020.
In a statement, presidential chief of staff Hamilton Mourao said: “The transfer of power is a political process, but it also has a technical and economic dimension. This document is not a political plan. It is not a precedent. It is a simple technical procedure.”
The agreement does have a political dimension, as Bolsonaro is expected to negotiate the terms of the transfer of power with his opponents, including the leftist Workers’ Party.
Brazil’s government has been criticised by its own left-wing lawmakers, who criticised the decision to keep Bolsonaro in the role for one year.
Bolsonaro will be sworn in at the Planalto palace on Tuesday, after he was officially elected on Sunday evening with 60.89% of the popular vote. He will be able to run in the election, with a run as a “plurality president” expected following the election, and will then be able to decide on the agreement with his opposition.
Bolsonaro, the 40-year-old politician from the wealthy south-eastern state of Rio de Janeiro, was elected as far-right candidate with a huge show of support, but he has a long history of antagonism with the country’s left.
Bolsonaro, who was born in the impoverished favela of