Defeated Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and his family arrived in Miami on Wednesday after traveling through Argentina and Ecuador, two countries led by presidents aligned with the Trump administration. Bolsonaro left Brazil for Argentina on Tuesday with his wife and two daughters, then traveled to Ecuador, according to Argentine officials and flight data reviewed by Newsweek. The 45-year-old senator and his family arrived in Florida a day after the Trump administration confirmed it had granted them U.S. visas.
Newsweek reached out to the White House and the Argentine and Ecuadorian foreign ministries for comment on Wednesday. Bolsonaro, who lost Sunday’s runoff election to incumbent left-wing president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is under investigation by Brazil’s Supreme Court, accused of corruption, money laundering and foreign exchange violations. A Brazilian judge had ordered him to hand over his regular and diplomatic passports by noon Tuesday.
He has denied any wrongdoing and has called the case political persecution. Argentina's National Directorate of Migration said Bolsonaro, his wife and two daughters entered the northeastern province of Misiones via the Tancredo Neves International Bridge at 10:50 p.m. Tuesday carrying valid travel documents.
Within an hour, they boarded a private charter plane, the authority said. Flight-tracking website Flightradar24 showed that a plane matching the description of Bolsonaro's aircraft landed in Guayaquil, Ecuador, at about 4 a.m. local time before departing for Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport, where it landed at approximately 9:30 a.m. local time Wednesday. A Brazilian diplomat who was not authorized to speak publicly told The that Bolsonaro entered Argentina on an Italian passport.
His exit left no record at Brazilian checkpoints, where exit checks are not required, the diplomat said. (AFP) confirms Bolsonaro has held Italian citizenship since 2023. State Department said Tuesday that it would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family, allowing them to enter the United States. Bolsonaro's journey through Argentina could further strain relations between Lula and Argentine President Javier Milei, a Trump ally who traveled to Brazil to support Bolsonaro's campaign.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won Brazil's presidential runoff on Sunday with 51.8 percent of valid votes to 48.2 percent for Bolsonaro, according to Brazil's Superior Electoral Court, with 100 percent of ballots counted. Lula's victory secures him a fourth nonconsecutive term as president. The 81-year-old's new term begins January 5, 2027.
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