Topline
President Donald Trump appeared to mix up India and Brazil in a late Sunday night Truth Social post about the latter’s presidential election results—where Trump’s ally Flávio Bolsonaro advanced to a runoff—where he once again attacked the U.S. voting and counting process as “corrupt,” without citing any evidence.
President Donald Trump appeared to mix up Brazil’s Presidential elections with India’s.
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Key Facts
In a Truth Social post made shortly before midnight, Trump wrote that 125 million people voted in the first round of “India’s Presidential Election,” although Brazil went to the polls on Sunday.
The president noted that the results in the Brazilian election came out “shortly after the vote closed, on the SAME DAY!”
Trump then used the quick counting example to attack Democratic-run cities and states, specifically Detroit, Philadelphia and California, claiming baselessly that their slower counting of votes was because they “take weeks to Rig” the elections.
The president then declared that “Voting in America is CORRUPT” without citing any evidence of corruption.
Brazil’s significantly faster counting in the cities and states Trump mentioned is due to multiple factors, including its nationwide use of electronic voting machines, which can quickly tally and transmit results once polls close.
What Has Trump Said About India’s Elections?
Although Sunday night’s post mentions India by mistake, a few months ago the president mentioned the world’s largest democracy and its mandatory use of Voter IDs. Trump claimed that in a meeting, India’s Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, asked U.S. Ambassador Sergio Gor: “How can you have Elections in the U.S. without a valid Photo ID?” Trump pointed out that more than 646 million voted in India’s 2024 general elections, the largest ever in history, and less than 1% voted by mail. Citing the example, Trump argued that Congress should pass “THE SAVE AMERICA ACT,” which would require people to produce documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote. The president, however, didn’t mention that the 2024 Indian election took place in seven phases over 44 days, and that ballot counting began three days after the final phase of voting ended. India also uses standardized electronic voting machines nationwide, and the Indian Election Commission administers the polls federally.
Tangent
In June, Trump made several unsubstantiated claims about the primary elections in California, alleging that the Democrats were trying to “steal” the California primaries from two Republicans, LA Mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt and Gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton. Without any evidence, Trump attacked “very late and massive numbers of” mail-in ballots, reiterating his long-time opposition to voting by mail. Attacking the state’s electoral process, Trump claimed: “Two great Republican Candidates are being cheated, and so is America, which if the Dumocrats are able to fulfill their mission, great trouble and consternation will follow.” Despite Trump’s complaints, Hilton did advance in the gubernatorial race and will take on Democrat Xavier Beccara in November.
What Happened In The Brazil Presidential Elections?
The presidential race in Brazil advanced to a runoff after no candidate secured an absolute 50% majority in the first round. Flávio Bolsonaro, an ally of President Trump and the son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, finished the night in first place with 47% of the vote. Incumbent President Lula da Silva, the leftist leader who has frequently sparred with Trump over many issues including tariffs, trailed behind him with 45.1%
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