Bolsonaro arrives in Florida after election loss in Brazil

Brazilian presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro and his family arrived in Miami, Florida, on Wednesday morning, reported Xinhua.

Their plane landed in the U.S. city after flying from Argentina, with a stop in Ecuador, AFP reported.

Bolsonaro, who lost Sunday's presidential election to incumbent Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, left Brazil despite a court order barring him from leaving the country.

Brazilian media reported Monday that Supreme Federal Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes had ordered Bolsonaro to surrender his passports to the Federal Police and barred him from leaving the country.

U.S. media reported Tuesday, citing a senior State Department official, that the department would issue visas to Bolsonaro and his family, allowing them to enter the United States.

With all the votes counted, Lula received 51.79 percent of the valid votes, compared with 48.21 percent for Bolsonaro, according to the official tally.

Declares himself "leader of Brazil" despite election defeat

Bolsonaro declared himself "the leader of Brazil" in an open letter posted on X on Wednesday, after reportedly traveling to the United States via Argentina using an Italian passport.

In the letter, Flavio, son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, alleged electoral fraud without providing evidence, accusing Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF) of overstepping the electoral court's authority.

He claimed that the order to extend voting hours was communicated only after the official closing time, resulting in unequal treatment of voters.

Lula defeated Bolsonaro by more than 4 million votes in Sunday's runoff. According to Brazilian media, only about 34,300 votes were cast after the original 5 p.m. (2000 GMT) closing time, far fewer than Lula's margin of victory.

The STF ordered voting to be extended until 7 p.m. on Sunday after both presidential campaigns reported difficulty voters faced in reaching polling stations. The ruling ultimately applied only to polling stations that had remained open at 5 p.m., while those already closed were not reopened.

In the letter, Bolsonaro thanked U.S. President Donald Trump and Argentine President Javier Milei, denied fleeing Brazil, and said he would lead the opposition from abroad.

Flavio's departure came after STF Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered him to surrender his passports and barred him from leaving Brazil in connection with an investigation into suspected money laundering and illegal transfers of funds abroad.