President Donald Trump on Thursday sharply criticized Brazil’s presidential election, calling it a “disgrace” while declining to say whether he recognized leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s victory over conservative challenger Flavio Bolsonaro.

Speaking to reporters before departing on a midterm election campaign trip, Trump questioned the legitimacy of the outcome and said the election had embarrassed Brazil.

“I think the election was a disgrace in Brazil,” Trump said when asked whether he accepted Lula’s victory.

“I don't want to comment on it right now, but I thought the election was a very great embarrassment to the people of Brazil,” he added.

Trump said he had watched the election but refrained from openly supporting either candidate after being asked not to take sides by Brazil’s incumbent president. He nevertheless criticized the result and pointed to a decline in Brazil’s stock market following Lula’s victory as evidence of the negative reaction.

The comments marked a harder public stance than Trump’s remarks Wednesday, when he described the election as “very strange” but said he would not get involved in Flavio Bolsonaro’s claim to the presidency.

Bolsonaro arrived in the United States on Wednesday with his wife and daughters after leaving Brazil, where he disputes the election result. In a statement published on X, he declared himself the rightful winner and accused those responsible for the outcome of electoral fraud.

“I am the elected president,” Bolsonaro said, alleging that a criminal organization had stolen the election and established a tyranny.

Lula won Sunday’s runoff with 51.8% of the vote, according to the reported results. The outcome handed the presidency to the left-wing leader over Bolsonaro, a conservative ally of Trump.

The dispute has drawn additional attention because of the close political ties between the Trump administration and the Bolsonaro family. Flavio Bolsonaro’s father, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, is under house arrest in Brazil following an investigation into his efforts to overturn his 2022 election defeat to Lula.

Flavio Bolsonaro’s departure also raises questions about his legal circumstances in Brazil. He is reportedly under investigation over alleged corruption and money laundering. With his parliamentary immunity approaching expiration, authorities had ordered him to surrender his passports, but he left Brazil and traveled to the United States by way of Argentina and Ecuador.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the Bolsonaro family members were inspected upon arrival and cleared under applicable immigration laws and procedures. The department did not publicly provide further details about the circumstances of their entry.

Lula criticized Bolsonaro’s departure, describing it as a “shameful” act.

Trump’s remarks come just days before the U.S. midterm elections, in which Republicans face a closely contested battle to retain control of Congress. His refusal to endorse Brazil’s announced election outcome has also prompted questions about how he might respond to potential Republican losses at home, although he did not directly address that comparison Thursday.

The immediate political and legal consequences of Bolsonaro’s challenge remain uncertain as Brazil’s new president prepares to take office and the former candidate continues to dispute the result from the United States.