Brazilian senator Flávio Bolsonaro has arrived in the United States, in Miami, less than a week after losing Brazil’s presidential election. According to ABC News, he was seen stepping off a plane at Opa-locka Executive Airport in Florida with his family.

Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, lost Sunday’s vote to incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. In the days that followed he faced mounting legal pressure: a court ordered him to surrender his passports amid investigations into alleged corruption, money laundering and tax evasion — allegations he disputes.

On Monday, after the passport order, Flávio Bolsonaro said he had no plans to leave the country and would defend himself. He and his family later disappeared from Brazil. Argentina’s migration department said they entered northern Argentina late Tuesday, then travelled via Ecuador and flew on a Gulfstream G400 private jet to Miami.

ABC notes that the US State Department said it would grant them entry visas. US President Donald Trump told reporters he would approve of Bolsonaro coming to the United States. The move may deepen the rift between Washington and Brasília; Lula has previously accused the US of colluding with the Bolsonaro family.

As a senator, Flávio Bolsonaro still has immunity, but loses it when his Senate term ends in February, according to ABC. His father also fled to Florida after the 2022 defeat before returning; he is now serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup, the same reporting says.

The Miami arrival confirms the journey and the US visa frame announced by authorities. The sources consulted do not confirm that Brazilian passports were handed in, nor any extradition deal.

Image: Miami (Wikimedia Commons).

Sources consulted: Flavio Bolsonaro arrives in Miami after fleeing Brazil - ABC News; Defeated Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro and his family arrive in Miami - AP News.