The investigation comes as both Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro prepare to contest each other for what is being described as a consequential election in Brazil, that could shape the developing economy’s forecast and future for decades to come.
Brazil's attorney general asked the police on Thursday to investigate allegations that US President Donald Trump's administration was using government funds to promote a "far-right agenda" in the South American country.
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Brazil is three days away from a hotly contested presidential election pitting leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva against Flavio Bolsonaro, a right-wing senator – son and political heir to embattled former conservative President Jair Bolsonaro.
Lula has made Brazil's sovereignty a central campaign theme, warning against "meddling" by Trump, who has backed several right-wing candidates in recent Latin American elections.
Attorney General Jorge Messias called for the probe a day after the UK’s The Guardian newspaper published an article alleging the Trump administration planned to award $1 million (€888,800) to fund civil society groups opposing Brazil's Supreme Court.
The article "raises a serious red flag regarding Brazilian sovereignty," Messias wrote in a post on X. He added that efforts to meddle in Brazilian institutions "cannot be tolerated."
In a separate statement announcing the complaint, the attorney general's office said the Guardian report was "particularly serious, given the ongoing Brazilian electoral process and recent episodes of external pressure on the country's institutions."
Trump was a close ally of Bolsonaro's father, Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently serving a 27-year sentence for attempting a coup after he lost a re-election bid in 2022.
The US administration briefly imposed sanctions against Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes who led the trial against the former president, which Trump slammed as a "witch hunt" against his ally.