Flavio Bolsonaro, from the US, claims leadership of Brazil and rejects election results

First address from exile

Brazilian senator Flavio Bolsonaro published a letter on social media on Wednesday in which he called himself the country's 'leader' and pledged to lead the opposition to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from the United States. This is his first public statement since fleeing Brazil in defiance of a Supreme Court travel ban, Anadolu reports.

How the escape unfolded

The 45-year-old senator arrived by private jet in the Miami area on Wednesday morning after illegally crossing the land border with Argentina. His departure was preceded by a conflict with the country's highest court: on Monday, Federal Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes gave him 24 hours to surrender his travel documents as part of an investigation into money laundering and financial schemes linked to online betting platforms. Instead of complying with the order, Bolsonaro crossed the border in the province of Misiones using his domestic ID card, after which the Federal Police revoked his Brazilian passports and he boarded a charter flight to Miami. The arrival came less than 72 hours after his defeat in Sunday's runoff, in which he lost to Lula with 48.24% against 51.76%.

Refusal to accept the results and accusations against judges

Speaking to supporters from Florida as the Liberal Party candidate, Bolsonaro outright rejected the official results certified by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE): 'On Sunday evening I watched with horror as electoral fraud unfolded before my eyes.' However, as Anadolu notes, he presented no material evidence or specific documents to support his claims of large-scale manipulation of the vote count.

Justifying his departure and appeal to the international community

Bolsonaro explained his departure by the 'politicization of the justice system' in Brazil. 'There is no arrest warrant against me because I have committed no crime. What is happening is a politically motivated witch hunt aimed at using me as a hostage or an object of blackmail to shield corrupt Supreme Court justices from impeachment,' he said. 'I did not flee Brazil. I left for Brazil's sake. I left a state of emergency to be the leader my people deserve,' the senator added, calling on foreign governments not to recognize the new administration: 'To the international community: I ask that you do not normalize what is happening in Brazil.'

The US and the parallel with his father

Bolsonaro publicly thanked US President Donald Trump and the 'wonderful American people' for the welcome: the State Department confirmed issuing entry visas to the senator and his close relatives. His decision to lead the opposition from US territory, as Anadolu observes, repeats the scenario of his father Jair Bolsonaro, who remained in Florida after the 2022 election, and heightens institutional tensions between Brasilia and Washington ahead of Lula's inauguration, scheduled for January 5, 2027.