US President Donald Trump said that he would approve the arrival of Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, who lost the presidential election to Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in the country.
“I would approve it. I think they are good people. The election was very strange and I think it was terrible“, Trump told reporters at the “Andrews“ Air Force Base in Maryland.
The American president emphasized that he had not officially supported any of the candidates. On Monday, he claimed, without providing evidence, that the Brazilian election was rigged.
US media reported that Bolsonaro had arrived
„The Washington Post“ and CNN reported that Flavio Bolsonaro had arrived in the United States the night after the election. Both media outlets cited anonymous sources familiar with the matter, but did not specify the Brazilian senator's exact whereabouts.
Earlier, a senior State Department official told The Associated Press that Washington would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family and allow them to enter the country.
Bolsonaro's campaign also said it did not know where he was. "We were surprised and we still don't know where he is," said Senator Rogerio Marinho, his campaign coordinator.
Bolsonaro does not recognize the result
Lula da Silva was re-elected with 52 percent of the vote. He received more than 64 million votes compared to less than 60 million for Flavio Bolsonaro, with the difference between the two being about 4.4 million votes.
Flavio Bolsonaro has not conceded defeat. On Monday, he said he would seek the annulment of the election results due to alleged irregularities and that he intended to lead the opposition against Lula. However, his party has already recognized the re-election of the incumbent president.
The senator was ordered by a court order to surrender his ordinary and diplomatic passports. According to a police source quoted by Agence France-Presse, after he failed to comply with the order, the documents were cancelled. According to a document from the Italian parliament, Bolsonaro has also held Italian citizenship since 2023.
Senator under investigation
Flavio Bolsonaro is under investigation for alleged corruption, money laundering and tax evasion. He denies any wrongdoing and accuses Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Morais, who is leading one of the investigations, of being biased towards Lula.
The senator's brother, Eduardo Bolsonaro, lives in the United States and has contacts with the Trump administration. Last week, he said he supports Flavio's possible departure from Brazil if he loses the election.
Meanwhile, a Brazilian judge has ordered an investigation into possible foreign funding of Flavio Bolsonaro's election campaign and possible interference through manipulation of social networks, including those related to the company “Meta“.
Sources: bta.bg, apnews.com, washingtonpost.com