Bolsonaro Leaves Brazil as US Promises Visas Despite Passport Order

Senator Flavio Bolsonaro left Brazil for the United States this week after losing Sunday's presidential race to incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, three sources confirmed on Tuesday afternoon. A senior US State Department official said the department will issue visas for him and his family and permit their entry.

The departure unfolded as he declined to comply with a Supreme Court order to surrender passports issued Monday, giving him 24 hours to comply. Two sources said the passports were canceled once the deadline passed. The order grew out of a money laundering investigation that Bolsonaro denies, and the court cited the risk he would flee along with his "significant financial resources." A senior Federal Police official said he did not cross through any regular border checkpoint.

The senator had not conceded to Lula when he departed. Speaking in Brasilia, Lula said he learned of the exit only that day and called it shameful, arguing Bolsonaro should have remained to prove his innocence. The contest also exposed divisions within the candidate's own camp: his Liberal Party stated Monday that it recognizes Lula's win, while Bolsonaro said Sunday he would seek to annul the result over alleged voter irregularities.

President Trump did not address the departure on Monday but told the press the Brazilian vote "looked like another rigged election." He has previously said Flavio's father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, faced judicial persecution. The elder Bolsonaro also went to the United States after refusing to concede to Lula in 2022, later returned, and received a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup after his supporters stormed government buildings in Brasilia.

The senator's own campaign appeared caught off guard. Campaign manager Senator Rogerio Marinho told reporters the team had discussed just a day before that Bolsonaro, with 60 million votes, should assume the role of opposition leader. On Monday Bolsonaro said he had no plans to depart: "I have never thought about leaving the country."

His immunity from prosecution ends when his Senate term expires in February. His younger brother Eduardo, who lives in the United States, told podcaster Steven Crowder this month: "If my brother does not win, I'm in favor that he would leave the country." One source close to the family said he landed in Florida but would not specify where.

His wife and two daughters traveled with him, though their locations were not immediately established.