Thousands of President Jair Bolsonaro’s supporters have called on the Brazilian military to intervene and keep the right-wing leader’s seat after he lost to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

After days of silence, Mr Bolsonaro on November 1 “speaks out” about last weekend’s election results, neither conceding his defeat nor congratulating Lula on his victory. Even so, the president’s chief of staff  Brazil  later said that the leader had ordered the transition of the government to proceed.

Since then, Bolsonaro’s supporters have rallied in front of “military” facilities in major Brazilian cities to call for action, according to AFP.

“Federal intervention is needed now!”, the crowd chanted in front of the Southeastern Military Command in Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, on November 2.

In the southern state of Santa Catarina, protesters raised their hands in a Hitler salute. Thousands of people also gathered in the capital Brasilia, chanting the slogan “all people oppose”. And in the city center Rio de Janeiro, the crowd chanted: “The thief Lula, the place you need to go is the prison”.

Protesters also maintained street blockades across the country for the third day in a row, police said, although the number had dropped from 271 on November 1 to 167 on November 2.

In Sao Paulo, military police used tear gas to break up a blockade on the main highway linking the state with the Central-Western region of the country, after the Supreme Federal Court ordered the use of ” all necessary measures” to pave the way.

The blockade has paralyzed traffic nationwide. The main airport in Sao Paulo has canceled 48 flights due to the protests. The National Federation of Industry has warned of an immediate fuel shortage if congested roads are not cleared quickly.

In a speech that lasted just over two minutes on November 2, Bolsonaro did not mention Lula by name, but promised to abide by the constitution. Mr. Lula’s Labor Party earlier announced that vice-president-elect Geraldo Alckmin would lead the transition of the government, starting on November 3.

Mr. Lula, who served as president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010, will take office for a third term on January 1, 2023.