Bolsonaro claims he is Brazil's true leader after fleeing to US

Defeated Brazilian right-wing presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro asserted on Wednesday that he is the genuine leader of his nation following his arrival in the United States, where he plans to establish a self-imposed exile. The claim came as leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva secured a decisive victory in the country's recent runoff election.

Bolsonaro, in a statement published on his X account, denounced the election results as a result of "electoral fraud" and maintained that he would lead the opposition while in the US. He later amended his statement, referring to himself as the "leader" rather than the "president." Flavio Bolsonaro, 45, arrived in Miami on a private jet earlier on the same day.

His visit to the US follows his father Jair Bolsonaro's recent arrest for attempting to overturn his own electoral defeat in 2022. The US administration, led by President Donald Trump, has a close connection to the Bolsonaro family, with Trump acknowledging that he will not interfere in Flavio Bolsonaro's presidential claim. Flavio Bolsonaro is currently under investigation in Brazil for alleged corruption and money laundering.

He has also been stripped of his Brazilian and diplomatic passports but retains Italian nationality since 2023. The US homeland security department confirmed that Bolsonaro's family members were inspected and cleared according to immigration laws. Flavio Bolsonaro's controversial journey to the US and the ongoing fraud investigations surrounding him have sparked controversy both domestically and internationally.