"I will continue respecting our constitution," Bolsonaro told reporters on Tuesday, adding that he would "authorize" the transition of power to Lula, who narrowly won the Sunday runoff vote.
"it’s an honor to be the leader of millions of Brazilians who, like myself, believe in economic freedom, religious freedom, free speech, honesty and the green and yellow colors of our national flag,” he said.
However, Bolsonaro refused to call Lula, the candidate from the left-wing Workers Party, the victor in the election. Bolsonaro said his right-wing supporters have the right to demonstrate, but that they must be "peaceful" and not resort to what he called the "illegal methods of the left."
Following announcement of Lula's victory on Sunday and massive celebrations in Brazil's major cities, Bolsonaro supporters reportedly began blockading streets using trucks in a manner of protest reminiscent of the anti-Covid lockdown protests by right-wingers in the US and Canada earlier this year.
Bolsonaro has often been compared to former US President Donald Trump, who rejected the results of the November 2020 US presidential elections after he lost them to Democratic challenger Joe Biden. It was anticipated that Bolsonaro might do the same, having made similar overtures about the potential for election fraud on electronic voting machines.
The right-wing leader came to power in 2018 elections after Lula, the front-runner in that race, was suddenly disqualified weeks before the vote. Lula had been convicted of charges of money laundering and corruption, which were later annulled after being found to have been politically motivated.