Brazil truckers jam traffic to protest Bolsonaro election loss

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazilian truckers supportive of President Jair Bolsonaro blocked hundreds of roads early Tuesday to protest his election loss to former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Since the leftist da Silva's victory Sunday night, many truck drivers have jammed traffic in areas across the country and said they won't acknowledge Bolsonaro's defeat.

Bolsonaro hasn't spoken publicly since official results were released roughly 36 hours ago, nor phoned da Silva to concede.

The highway to and from the international airport in Sao Paulo – Brazil's most populous state and largest economy – was blocked and dozens of flights were cancelled.

Videos on social media showed travellers rolling their suitcases at night along the highway to the airport.

Access was partially reestablished as of 8 a.m. local time.

In neighbouring Minas Gerais, a key battleground state in the election, a video on social media showed a protester telling a reporter from O Tempo: “We won't stop as long as we don't have a response from our president.”

The man, wearing a green-and-yellow shirt – the colours of the Brazilian flag and of the nation's conservative movement – claimed the election was “fraudulent” and warned of future protests.

“We want Bolsonaro in 2023 and for the years to come,” he said.

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