Bolsonaro flees to Miami, claims Brazil’s election was stolen

• Lula won 51.8% of the vote in Sunday’s runoff.
• Bolsonaro arrived in Florida despite an order to surrender his passports.
• US president Trump questioned the election but said he would not intervene.

Defeated Brazilian right-wing presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro claimed to be the country’s rightful leader on Wednesday after arriving in Florida, vowing to lead the opposition from abroad despite losing Sunday’s runoff election to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

“I am the elected president, and the criminals who stole Brazil’s election are part of a criminal organization that has established a tyranny,” Bolsonaro, 45, said in a statement, alleging electoral fraud. In a subsequent statement, he referred to himself as the opposition’s “leader” rather than president.

Bolsonaro arrived at Opa-locka Executive Airport near Miami aboard a private jet, accompanied by his wife and daughters. His departure came despite an order requiring him to surrender his passports amid investigations into alleged financial misconduct.

A Brazilian police source told Agence France-Presse that his Brazilian and diplomatic passports had been canceled. However, documents reviewed by AFP indicated that Bolsonaro has also held Italian nationality since 2023. The US Department of Homeland Security said his family had been cleared in accordance with applicable immigration procedures. Brazilian police said he was not considered a fugitive.

Lula, who won 51.8% of the vote, described Bolsonaro’s departure as “shameful.” In Argentina, opposition lawmakers demanded explanations over how the senator was able to transit through the country.

US President Donald Trump, whose administration maintains close ties with the Bolsonaro family, described Brazil’s election as “very strange” but said he would not get involved in Flavio Bolsonaro’s claim to the presidency.

His father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, is under house arrest after attempting to overturn his 2022 election defeat to Lula. He left Brazil before Lula’s inauguration and returned three months later.

Flavio Bolsonaro also faces investigations into alleged corruption and money laundering. One probe concerns the financing of Dark Horse, an unreleased film about his father starring US actor Jim Caviezel. Brazilian outlet Intercept Brasil reported in May that recordings captured Flavio Bolsonaro discussing approximately $24 million in financing with banker Daniel Vorcaro, who is jailed in connection with a major fraud case.

The Supreme Court ordered an investigation into the film’s financing in July. Flavio Bolsonaro acknowledged that Vorcaro funded the project but maintained that the arrangement was a “completely legal” private business deal. Police are also investigating separate allegations that he laundered money and transferred funds abroad with the assistance of lawyer Willer Tomaz.

Read more: Trump questions legitimacy of Brazil’s election, calls it ‘rigged’