U.S. grants visas to Flávio Bolsonaro after Brazil election loss
The senator left Brazil on Sunday to avoid surrendering his passports before Tuesday's noon deadline.
By Emma Foster ·
Sixty million votes separated Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from Senator Flávio Bolsonaro in Sunday's election.
Lula secured more than 64 million votes, while Bolsonaro received fewer than 60 million. This margin represents nearly 4% of the total ballots cast. The result confirmed Lula's victory in the presidential race.
A senior State Department official told CBS News on Tuesday that the U.S. will issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family. This move allows them entry into the country after his defeat. Bolsonaro departed Brazil for the United States immediately after the election results were finalized.
The senator's exit coincided with a strict deadline to surrender his regular and diplomatic passports. That deadline passed at noon Tuesday. It remains unclear if he complied with the court order before leaving the country. He was served with the order on Monday, one day after the vote.
Bolsonaro said he received the order outside the home where his father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, resides. Jair Bolsonaro is serving a 27-year sentence under house arrest. He faces charges related to an attempt to stage a coup following his 2022 election loss. He fled to Florida after that defeat and returned three months later.
A sealed Supreme Court order issued on Sunday required Bolsonaro to turn in his documents. He has refused to concede defeat and has made allegations of election fraud without providing evidence. A spokesperson for the senator did not respond to requests for comment. His campaign manager, Rogério Marinho, also declined to speak.
Eduardo Bolsonaro, Flávio's brother who lives in Texas, had encouraged him to leave Brazil if he lost. Eduardo was convicted in absentia in June for illegally lobbying the Trump administration. He was sentenced to four years in prison, and a warrant for his arrest was recently issued. President Trump suggested on Monday that the election was rigged, though he did not provide evidence to support that claim.
Source: CBS News
