Bolsonaro - who is a target of the investigation himself - and his allies deny wrongdoing and say they are victims of political persecution, echoing former U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s characterization of his legal woes. He repeatedly sowed doubt about the reliability of Brazil’s voting system, never conceded defeat in the October 2022 presidential election and declined to attend President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s swearing-in.