WASHINGTON: After President Jair Bolsonaro threw doubt on the integrity of impending elections, the US warned Thursday that Brazilians needed “confidence” in their democracy.

The far-right incumbent was one of former US President Donald Trump’s closest pals and has copied his tactics by claiming without evidence that Brazil’s electronic voting system is rife with fraud.

The US has “high confidence in Brazil’s democratic institutions,” according to State Department spokesperson Ned Price.

“Brazil has a strong track record of free and fair elections with transparency and high levels of voter participation,” Price told reporters.

“It’s important that Brazilians, as they look forward to their elections later this year, have confidence in their electoral systems and that Brazil once again is in a position to demonstrate to the world through these elections the enduring strength of Brazil’s democracy,” he said.

In surveys ahead of the October elections, Bolsonaro is lagging behind former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a popular socialist who was imprisoned in a notorious corruption case.

Bolsonaro declared on Thursday that his party will employ a firm to examine the elections, a further indicator of his campaign’s mistrust of electronic voting, which he has spent years demonising.

Bolsonaro has regularly questioned the electoral system and used campaign catchphrases such as “prison, death, or victory” as the only potential outcomes of the election.

US President Joe Biden has avoided public spats with Bolsonaro, preferring to work together wherever feasible, particularly on climate policy, which is critical to Brazil.

Bolsonaro has acknowledged a private visit by CIA Director William Burns last year, who has frequently served as a conduit for sensitive messages from the Biden administration to foreign governments.

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