October 1, 2022 07:51
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced that he expects Brazil to demonstrate the strength of its democratic institutions in the first round of the presidential elections, in which the current right-wing president, Jair Bolsonaro, will face former leftist President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva on Sunday.
“I can only tell you, in general, that Brazil has very strong democratic institutions, including very strong electoral colleges, and it has proven that many times,” Blinken told the press alongside his Canadian counterpart Melanie Jolie, who is visiting Washington.
“We expect this to be the case once more during the elections this weekend,” he added, stressing that he did not want to interfere with the vote.
For her part, Jolie indicated that she will travel with her American counterpart to Latin America next week, to attend a meeting of the Organization of American States in Lima next Thursday and Friday.
“We will have vigorous discussions regarding the future of democracy on our continent,” she said.
Source: agencies
