Flávio Bolsonaro, the senator who lost Brazil's presidential election, has left the country and is traveling to the United States, according to БИЗНЕС Online. CNN Brasil confirmed the departure through people close to the politician, and an unnamed US official told Reuters that Bolsonaro was on a plane headed for the United States.
According to the Argentine newspaper La Nacion, the right-wing politician left Brazil together with his family. His departure came despite a court ban on him leaving the country.
Why it matters
The exit of a sitting senator and former presidential candidate under a court-ordered travel restriction turns a lost election into a legal confrontation. It also places a member of Brazil's most prominent political family in the United States at a moment when his father, former president Jair Bolsonaro, is serving a long prison sentence at home.
The case carries weight beyond Brazil. Flávio Bolsonaro campaigned on closer ties with Washington and on rethinking Brazil's place in the BRICS bloc, so his presence on US soil is likely to draw attention from both governments.
Passports ordered surrendered
The day before his reported departure, a court ordered Bolsonaro to hand over his passports. The order was issued in connection with a money-laundering case in which he is a defendant. The politician denies any wrongdoing.
La Nacion reported that he left the country in spite of that restriction. БИЗНЕС Online did not say how he was able to travel or which route he took.
Bolsonaro, 45, is a senator for the Liberal Party. He was running for president for the first time. His platform called for cutting state spending, taxes and bureaucracy, and for strengthening relations with the United States. He also advocated reviewing the role Brazil plays in BRICS.
He is the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently in prison. The younger Bolsonaro has likewise backed closer links with Washington.
A family's political history
Jair Bolsonaro led Brazil from 2019 to 2022. After his defeat in the 2022 election, his supporters rioted on a mass scale and stormed government buildings. In 2025, the former president was sentenced to 27 years in prison in a case concerning an attempted coup.
The election that Flávio Bolsonaro lost was won by incumbent president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Coverage of the campaign by BBC focused on how a surge of campaigning through social media helped Lula secure victory.
What to watch next: whether Brazilian authorities confirm Bolsonaro's whereabouts and respond to the apparent breach of the travel ban, and whether the United States comments on his arrival.
