Brazil presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro left for the United States on October 27, two days after losing the run-off to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. He did not comply with a Supreme Court order to surrender his passports. The incumbent President Lula condemned the act. A senior State Department official said Washington “will issue visas” to him and his family, according to Tuesday reports.
Bolsonaro, his wife Fernanda and their two daughters, aged 14 and 12, left Brazil for an unknown location in the US, according to initial reporting by the Brasília-based news site Metrópoles, later confirmed by other Brazilian and international media. He later reportedly landed in Miami, where his brother Eduardo received him and allegedly arranged the move with US authorities. Brazil’s government has not said how he left. A police source told AFP that his passports were cancelled, with “no formal record” of his departure.
Move in disguise
On October 26, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered Bolsonaro to hand his passports to the Federal Police within 24 hours. The order is part of a money-laundering investigation in which he denies wrongdoing. It cited a flight risk and his “significant financial resources.” After receiving the notice, Bolsonaro posted a video saying, “I have never thought about leaving the country,” and said he would stay. The deadline lapsed the next morning, and Flávio slipped through, flew to the US, and then flew back to Brazil. The Argentine site Infobae reported that Bolsonaro and his family may have crossed into Argentina, run by his ally, far-right President Javier Milei, and then travelled to the US by private jet.
How he got out, and who helped
Accounts of the route differ. Argentine and Brazilian outlets said he crossed into Argentina, and local media reported that a private jet flew from Buenos Aires to the border town of Puerto Iguazú. Argentina’s far-right government denies any involvement. Flávio’s camp has also given inconsistent statements. Campaign coordinator Rogério Marinho first denied leaving the country, then said he was surprised by the trip.
The US role is the most politically charged part. CNN reported, citing an adviser, that President Donald Trump personally approved his entry, and that administration officials knew of Moraes’s Monday order. The report did not say whether Trump was told directly. A day earlier, Trump said the vote looked “rigged” but “I didn’t take sides.”
Lula furious
Responding to Flavio’s flight, President Lula said, “Unfortunately, the Bolsonaro family is like that,” and accused the senator of abandoning the voters who backed him. US Rep. Joaquin Castro said the Trump administration “owes Congress answers” on its part in the departure. A political scientist at Barry University told CBS Miami that his presence could complicate the administration’s position. The Bolsonaros say the Supreme Court is persecuting them. The case echoes Jair Bolsonaro’s 2022 move to Florida, and Eduardo has lived in the US since 2025. Eduardo was convicted in June 2026 of coercion and attempted obstruction and received a green card in July.
Family pattern
Flávio is the third Bolsonaro to head to the United States with legal trouble at home. His father, Jair, flew to Florida two days before his term ended and skipped Lula’s inauguration. He stayed in a home outside Orlando, where he was photographed at a supermarket and a KFC. In late January 2023, he applied for a six-month tourist visa, as investigators examined whether he helped incite the January 8 riots. His lawyer said he wanted to “clear his head.” Flávio said then that his father was “not there to get away from anyone.” Jair was later sentenced to 27 years for leading a coup attempt.
Flávio’s younger brother, Eduardo, flew to the US in February 2025, then took unpaid leave from Parliament and sought asylum. He cited the risk of imprisonment by Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The Supreme Court later found that he admitted to moving to the US to lobby for sanctions against the judges prosecuting his father. He was convicted in June 2026 and received a green card in July. He says he will return only if granted amnesty. The family calls all three moves a response to political persecution. Critics call them an escape from accountability.
