Lula says Trump wants to ‘colonise’ and capture Brazil’s resources by meddling in election

A TV advertisement for Lula's presidential campaign in Brazil claims that US President Donald Trump aims to "colonise" the nation in order to seize its natural resources by interfering in the upcoming October election. The accusation aired on Thursday by Lula's team as concerns rise over potential US influence on the vote. The ad alleges that Trump is backing his far-right Brazilian counterpart, Flávio Bolsonaro, to advance his own interests in South America.

A spokesperson for Lula's Workers party stated that the ad aims to alert Brazilians to what they see as an ideologically driven US campaign. The State Department has dismissed allegations of US meddling, calling such insinuations "baseless lies". Meanwhile, Lula has accused Bolsonaro of wanting to "hand our natural resources over to the United States".

With less than a week remaining until the first round of voting on October 4th, the two frontrunners are tied in the polls. Both candidates are neck and neck in recent polls, and a run-off election is scheduled for October 25th if no candidate wins a majority. In recent weeks, there has been growing concern both domestically and internationally about alleged US interference in Brazil's election, including a campaign of diplomatic and economic pressure such as 25% tariffs on Brazilian imports.

Lula indirectly criticized the US during his speech at the UN General Assembly, stating that Brazilian democracy belongs to the Brazilian people. Democratic lawmakers have written to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, denouncing the Trump administration's actions and requesting a response by October 1st.