New York Young Republicans Declare Bolsonaro Winner of Brazil Election He Lost: ‘Send in the Tanks’
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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.
The apparent call for coup to stop the peaceful and democratic transfer of power in South America’s largest country was a reply to the president of the group, Gavin Mario Wax, writing, Bolsonaro should not repeat the mistake of Trump. Fight back against any fraud and a stolen election. Declare victory tonight.”
Wax’s tweet, for many reasons, is a bit of a headscratcher as then-President Donald Trump did declare victory on Election Night in 2020 “even though millions of legitimate votes had yet to be counted and races in half a dozen swing states still had not been called,” as NBC News reported that evening. Trump, of course, continues to deny he lost the election and has sown doubt in the legitimacy of American democracy.
The New York Young Republican Club is holding its 110th Annual Gala on December 10th, featuring controversial Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and “pizzagate” conspiracy theorist Jack Posobiec.
Tickets for the black-tie event are selling at a starting price of $399 for non-members and $349 for members – general admission tickets for non-members go all the way up to $699.
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