SAO PAULO — Senator Flávio Bolsonaro declared himself Brazil's rightful leader on Wednesday after arriving in the United States, alleging he was the victim of an electoral coup by the country's Supreme Court and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who won Sunday's runoff by over 4 million votes, Reuters reported.
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In an initial open letter posted on X, Bolsonaro declared himself “the elected president”. He then deleted that version and updated it with another letter in which he said he was the rightful “leader” of Brazil. “I want to say, not only to my 60 million voters but to the Brazilian people, that I am the leader and that the criminals who stole Brazil's election are part of a criminal organization that has established a tyranny,” he said in the updated version, according to Reuters.
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Bolsonaro arrived in Miami after leaving Brazil in secret, where he refused to comply with a Supreme Court order to surrender his passports. The order relates to a money-laundering investigation in which he denies wrongdoing. He thanked Argentine leader Javier Milei for helping him make the journey and US President Donald Trump, who granted him and his family entry visas, for welcoming him, Reuters reported. A senior State Department official said: “The State Department will issue visas to Flavio Bolsonaro and his family and allow them entry into the United States.”
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What is solid
- Lula's victory has been recognised by Brazil's federal electoral court, global leaders and international observers, and by Bolsonaro's own Liberal Party, Reuters reported.
- Electoral authority chief Kassio Nunes Marques said Brazil's election took place in full compliance with legal and constitutional requirements.
- Fewer than 35,000 votes — about 0.03% of the total — were cast in the extra two hours of voting ordered by the Supreme Court, according to an analysis cited by Reuters.
What is only claimed
- Bolsonaro alleges an electoral coup and fraud by the Supreme Court and Lula; he has provided no evidence for the claim.
- Trump called the election “very strange” but, asked about Bolsonaro's declaration at Joint Base Andrews, declined to comment on it.
Lula, who called Bolsonaro's departure “shameful” and said he should have stayed in Brazil to prove his innocence, has accused Washington of colluding with the Bolsonaro family to help return them to power. Washington denies meddling in Brazil's domestic affairs, Reuters reported. Bolsonaro's declaration poses a problem for Washington as it seeks to navigate a rift with Latin America's largest country, home to the world's second-largest reserves of rare earths.
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In his letter, Bolsonaro denied fleeing Brazil, saying he left to protect himself and his family: “I want to make this clear: I did not flee Brazil. I left Brazil, but I did not abandon the Brazilian people.” Analysts cited by Reuters say his request to annul the election result faces little chance of success. Neither Lula's office nor the Supreme Court immediately responded to requests for comment on the letter.
Source: Reuters via SRN News