Trump will not back Flávio Bolsonaro’s bid for Brazil presidency
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on TimesLIVE
Donald Trump’s administration does not plan to support Flávio Bolsonaro’s bid to lead Brazil, despite his arrival in the United States, US officials cited by Reuters report. The position could avert another diplomatic crisis with Brasília, while the former president Jair Bolsonaro’s son is losing political influence among Brazilian conservatives in exile.
The administration of US President Donald Trump does not intend to support Flávio Bolsonaro, the Brazilian senator who proclaimed himself the “true president” of Brazil, according to a US official and a person familiar with the matter cited by Reuters. The two sources said Donald Trump could change his position.
The US president had described as “rigged” the Brazilian election won by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, while saying he had not supported a candidate. Lula was re-elected by a margin of 3.5 points. According to the sources cited by Reuters, Washington may want to avoid another crisis with Brazil, after relations were marked by tensions in recent months.
Another US official said that Flávio Bolsonaro’s exile in the United States had weakened his political influence. Brazilian conservatives who had hoped to see him lead the opposition criticised his departure. Brazilian officials, for their part, said that the absence of Jair Bolsonaro, his father, weakened the conservative opposition in Congress.
The development follows Flávio Bolsonaro’s proclamation as the “true president” of Brazil on 28 October (his claim). On 30 October, Reuters also reported that Flávio Bolsonaro’s flight to Miami may have been paid for from the United States (the alleged funding of the flight to Miami).
