WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will grant entry visas to defeated Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and his family, a senior U.S. official confirmed Tuesday, amid mounting reports that the conservative senator fled his home country following Sunday’s election loss.
The visa decision, first confirmed to news outlets by a senior administration official on Tuesday, follows days of political turbulence in Brazil. Bolsonaro, an ally of President Donald Trump and the eldest son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, lost Sunday’s runoff election to incumbent leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva by more than four million votes. Although his Liberal Party acknowledged the outcome on Monday, the younger Bolsonaro has not formally conceded defeat.
Passport Seizure Order and Escape Reports
The U.S. visa announcement came one day after Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered Bolsonaro to turn over his passports within 24 hours and prohibited him from traveling abroad. Brazilian authorities are investigating the senator over allegations involving money laundering, corruption and tax evasion. Bolsonaro has not been formally charged and has maintained his innocence, describing the proceedings as political harassment.
Federal police officers approached Bolsonaro outside his father’s residence on Monday to enforce the passport order. In a video released that day, Bolsonaro confirmed the interaction and pledged to hand over the documents. “I never thought about leaving the country,” Bolsonaro said in the recording, adding that he planned to remain in Brazil to mount his defense.
By Tuesday, multiple Brazilian media outlets reported that Bolsonaro, accompanied by his wife and two daughters, had departed Brazil for the United States. A senior official with the Brazilian Federal Police said Bolsonaro did not depart through any regular border migration checkpoint, according to the New York Post. Allies, including his campaign manager and legal counsel, stated earlier in the day that they did not know his location.
Reactions From Washington and Brasília
President Trump has repeatedly disputed the election outcome, calling the vote “rigged” without citing evidence. During a campaign event in Texas on Tuesday evening, Trump reiterated his skepticism regarding the Brazilian balloting process. “Brazil is also doing a good job of it, aren’t they? Did you see that? I didn’t take sides, but it didn’t look very good,” Trump told the crowd.
The administration’s offer of safe passage drew sharp condemnation from Democratic lawmakers in Washington. Rep. Joaquin Castro criticized the move on social media, arguing that an election defeat does not justify asylum and demanding that the White House explain whether U.S. officials assisted Bolsonaro’s departure contrary to Brazilian court orders.
In Brasília, Lula addressed the reports during a gathering celebrating his 81st birthday on Tuesday. Lula said the senator should have stayed to address the legal inquiries against him. “Those who have nothing to hide have nothing to fear,” Lula told supporters, remarking that the Bolsonaro family treated the United States as their primary home and Brazil as a secondary base.
The controversy closely mirrors the aftermath of Brazil’s 2022 presidential contest. Following his loss to Lula, former President Jair Bolsonaro traveled to the United States before returning to Brazil, where he was ultimately sentenced to 27 years in prison for orchestrating a coup attempt and remains under house arrest. Another son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, lives in the United States and had publicly urged Flávio to leave Brazil if he lost the race.
Bolsonaro’s precise location and travel plans remained unverified Tuesday night, and the State Department did not disclose when he and his family might arrive in the United States.
