Rio de Janeiro | Oct. 20, 2026, 1:20 p.m. ET | 5 min read

When far-right Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro finished Brazil’s first-round presidential election with 47% of the vote – coming in first place but not clinching an outright victory against incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – U.S. President Donald Trump weighed in.

“A very big victory,” he told journalists , of Senator Bolsonaro’s slight lead heading into the runoff.

The United States has turned its attention more directly toward Latin America since Mr. Trump’s second term, exerting political and military pressure in the region under his National Security Strategy. The Trump administration has endorsed right-wing candidates for president in Honduras and Colombia, and exerted financial pressure ahead of a closely fought legislative vote in Argentina.

If Senator Bolsonaro wins in the Oct. 25 runoff, as polls indicate, Brazil would become the eighth Latin American country to elect a right or center-right candidate since Mr.…