Bolsonaro declares himself Brazil's rightful leader after fleeing to US, alleges election fraud without evidence

In an open letter published on X on October 28, Bolsonaro initially called himself "the elected president." He later deleted the post and published a revised version describing himself as Brazil's rightful "leader," Reuters reported.

Bolsonaro accused Lula and Brazil's Supreme Court of orchestrating an electoral coup and claimed that a criminal organization had stolen the election.

Lula won 51.79% of the vote against Bolsonaro's 48.21%, a margin of approximately 4.5 million votes. His victory has been recognized by Brazil's electoral court, international observers and Bolsonaro's own party.

Bolsonaro challenged a Supreme Court decision to extend voting by two hours in some areas. However, fewer than 35,000 ballots were cast during the extension, according to an analysis cited by Reuters — far too few to account for Lula's victory margin. Bolsonaro's own campaign had also requested an extension in other regions.

The senator arrived in Miami after leaving Brazil despite a Supreme Court order to surrender his passports in connection with a money-laundering investigation. He denies wrongdoing.

"I did not flee Brazil," Bolsonaro wrote, saying he had left to protect himself and his family from what he called political persecution.

He thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for welcoming his family and Argentine President Javier Milei for helping him travel to the United States.

Trump declined to comment directly on Bolsonaro's declaration, calling Brazil's election "very strange."

Bolsonaro's father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, also left Brazil after losing an election to Lula in 2022. He later returned and was sentenced to 27 years in prison for plotting a coup.