Left-wing wins in Serbia and Brazil deal blow to Trump's global network
The defeats of Aleksandar Vucic and Flavio Bolsonaro leave President Donald Trump with fewer allies abroad just days before U.S. midterm voters head to the polls.
By Robert Marshall ·
President Donald Trump faces a shrinking circle of international allies after voters in Serbia and Brazil rejected his preferred candidates. In Serbia, the Student List defeated outgoing president Aleksandar Vucic. In Brazil, incumbent Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva defeated Flavio Bolsonaro. These results landed just two days before American voters head to the polls on November 3 to choose members of Congress.
In Serbia, Vucic served as a close partner to the White House for years. He resigned the presidency to run for prime minister, a post he previously held from 2014 to 2017. Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., visited Belgrade in late 2024 and again earlier this year. Vucic had maintained warm relations with the Kremlin and did not join EU sanctions against Russia. He recently was slated to speak at a Conservative Political Action Conference event in Belgrade, though it is unclear if he will still attend.
In Brazil, the political shift is equally stark. Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, lost the race to Lula. Bolsonaro had called the vote "rigged" and "very bad" on Monday, echoing his own claims about the 2020 U.S. election. Flavio Bolsonaro, who is under investigation for corruption and money laundering, fled to Florida. The U.S. State Department granted him and his family entry visas despite the pending legal case.
Lawrence J. Haas, a senior fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council, noted that Trump supported both Jair Bolsonaro and his son. Haas said Trump was unhappy about the defeat of the Bolsonaro faction and does not feel warmly toward Lula. He predicted relations between the two nations would remain cool at best. Trump has a history of close ties with Jair Bolsonaro, who served as president until Lula defeated him in 2022.
The loss in Serbia removes one of Trump’s few European allies who share his view on Russia. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff recently called Russian President Vladimir Putin a "humanitarian." Trump has also stated that he gets along better with Putin than Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. With Vucic out of power, Belgrade’s alignment with Moscow may shift, leaving the White House with fewer partners in Europe who hold a similar stance.
In Israel, the outcome remains uncertain. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads the right-wing bloc with more than 96% of votes counted, but he has lost his majority. Coalition negotiations will be difficult. Trump and Netanyahu have been close allies since the February war against Iran. The United States remains Israel’s most important partner, and the relationship is expected to continue if Netanyahu stays in power.
Haas said these foreign election results will not directly influence the U.S. midterms. He explained that Americans are voting based on domestic issues and their feelings about the party in power. However, Trump holds the lowest approval rating on the eve of a midterm election since Harry Truman in 1946. Americans are concerned about affordability and strongly oppose the U.S.-Iran war.
