Defeated Brazilian candidate Flávio Bolsonaro arrives in U.S. after Brazil cancels his passports
Editorial illustration — Press Pass USAFlávio Bolsonaro, the defeated candidate in Brazil's presidential runoff, has arrived in the United States hours after Brazilian authorities cancelled his passports, sources told the BBC — a fast-moving turn in a post-election standoff that now spans two countries.
Sources told BBC Brasil and BBC Mundo that Bolsonaro met his younger brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, in Florida. How he travelled from Brazil to the United States remains unclear, and neither brother could be reached directly for comment, the BBC reported.
Bolsonaro lost Sunday's runoff to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and refused to concede, vowing to seek the election's annulment. On Monday, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered him to surrender his passports to federal police within 24 hours as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering. Bolsonaro has not been charged and denies wrongdoing.
At the time of the order, Bolsonaro said he had no plans to leave the country and would stay in Brazil to lead the opposition to Lula. After the deadline passed without him appearing, his own lawyers told BBC Brasil they were "completely in the dark" about his whereabouts. "We knew nothing about this, and we still have no information about what happened," one lawyer said.
Brazil's Federal Police cancelled his passports on Tuesday after the deadline expired. Federal officers checked border posts to see whether he had crossed into Argentina, but Argentine officials told the BBC they had no record of him entering the country.
Earlier on Tuesday, Washington confirmed that Bolsonaro would be allowed in. A senior U.S. official told the BBC and the Associated Press that the State Department "will issue visas to Flávio Bolsonaro and his family and allow them entry into the United States." CNN reported that President Donald Trump approved allowing Bolsonaro entry, citing a Trump adviser, and that administration officials were aware on Monday that he had roughly 24 hours to surrender his passport.
Lula reacted sharply to reports that his rival had gone abroad. Speaking at an event in Brasília, he said, according to The Guardian, that "the act of leaving Brazil is shameful." Lawmakers from Lula's Workers' Party have petitioned the Supreme Court for Bolsonaro's arrest, along with an Interpol Red Notice.
Whether Bolsonaro is seeking asylum remains unconfirmed. A deputy from his Liberal Party said in a video that Bolsonaro had flown to seek asylum in the United States, and one source close to the family told Reuters the administration had granted the family asylum — but no U.S. official has confirmed an asylum grant, and Bolsonaro has made no public statement since Monday afternoon.
Sources: BBC (Oct 27, 2026); CNN (Oct 27, 2026); Reuters (Oct 27, 2026); The Guardian via BBC (Oct 27, 2026).
Sponsored