Bolsonaro’s party head says nobody knew he would leave Brazil

Brazilian far-right senator Flávio Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party was unaware that he would leave the country for the United States following his defeat in Sunday’s runoff, nor of the letter in which he proclaimed himself the “leader” of Brazilians, according to party president Valdemar Costa Neto.

“No one approved the letter. No one approves of this situation that happened with Flávio… we want to move the country forward,” Costa Neto told the press on Thursday after visiting Flávio Bolsonaro’s father. 

Jair Bolsonaro, who was president of Brazil from (2019-2023), is currently serving a 27-year sentence in house arrest for plotting a coup attempt and Lula’s murder in 2022.

Flávio Bolsonaro left Brazil despite a judicial travel ban on Tuesday, after a day of rumors that he had already crossed the border with Argentina. He entered the Argentine city of Puerto Iguazú by land and took a private plane alongside his family to Miami, United States, with a stop in Ecuador. They arrived on Wednesday morning.

After that, Bolsonaro broke his silence with a letter in which he first described himself as the “true president-elect” of Brazil, although he later changed it to “the leader of Brazil.” In the text, he denounced electoral fraud as having allegedly led to President Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva’s reelection, without providing evidence, and said he was being politically persecuted.

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A letter and a trip “I didn’t like the letter,” Costa Neto said, referencing Bolsonaro’s statement. 

The Liberal Party’s president had issued a statement on Sunday night acknowledging the election results after Bolsonaro said he would not concede defeat.

According to Costa Neto, Jair Bolsonaro told him he did not know his son would leave the country, although he “said goodbye,” the party leader said. Flávio visited Jair in his home on Monday, right before learning about his travel ban.

“He came to see his father; not even [Jair] Bolsonaro knew he was going,” Costa Neto clarified.

Widespread rejection Brazilian politicians from all parties, including the Liberal Party, its allies, and center sectors, have expressed widespread rejection against Flávio Bolsonaro’s actions following the runoff and defended the election results.

São Paulo Governor Tarcísio de Freitas, an ally of the Bolsonaros and Jair’s first pick for presidential candidate before choosing to support his son instead, said that the senator must respect the election results and move forward.

Local media have described the contents of Flávio Bolsonaro’s letter as “coup-mongering” and said he “escaped” the country.

Judicial reactions in Argentina On Thursday, Argentine Federal Judge María Eugenia Capuchetti ordered President Javier Milei’s government to provide information about how Flávio Bolsonaro entered Argentina and the flight that departed from Puerto Iguazú to discover whether there were any irregularities in those movements.

Argentina’s customs office said Bolsonaro and his family crossed the border with “valid travel documentation” and had “no legal impediment” to enter the country.

In his letter, Flávio thanked President Milei “for his courage, sense of justice, and respect for the rule of law,” suggesting he helped him in his endeavor. Milei has not commented on this and remains the only South American president to not publicly acknowledge Lula’s victory in Brazil.

Several Argentine opposition members have filed criminal complaints against Milei and his administration, as well as information requests regarding Bolsonaro’s brief presence in the country to determine whether his entry was illegal and if the Argentine government assisted him.