The New York Young Republicans Club, the oldest and largest young Republicans club in the U.S., appeared to call for a coup in Brazil on Sunday night after their preferred candidate Jair Bolsonaro lost to rival and former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
“With 99.9% of the votes tallied in the runoff vote, da Silva had 50.9% and Bolsonaro 49.1%, and the election authority said da Silva’s victory was a mathematical certainty,” reported the Associated Press on the result, which was actually much tighter than expected.
News reports and election officials in the country were not enough to sway the New York Young Republicans Club, however. The group’s Twitter account announced Sunday night, “We proudly congratulate @jairbolsonaro on his victory in today’s runoff presidential election. Today’s victory comes in the face of massive opposition; today’s election was riddled with fraud engineered by Lula’s supporters. This fraud will not go unchallenged.”
Without citing any evidence or offering how a group of young Republicans in New York might know what is happening on the ground in Brazil, the group added, “We stand on the side of Brazilian People who advocate for liberty, prosperity, and good governance. We call on American and international organizations to recognize President Bolsonaro’s victory posthaste. The media will tell their lies. We will speak the truth.”
The absolute farce of a tweet was later followed by the announcement, “It’s time for action. Send in the tanks.” Twitter later deleted the tweet for violating its rules.
