US to grant visas to Flavio Bolsonaro and family after Brazil election dispute

A senior official from the US State Department has confirmed that the Trump administration will issue visas allowing Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro and his family to enter the United States. The announcement followed media reports that Bolsonaro had left Brazil after losing the country's presidential election.

The development came a day after Brazil's Supreme Court ordered Bolsonaro to surrender his passports as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering. Bolsonaro has rejected the allegations and had said on Monday that he had no intention of leaving Brazil, insisting he would remain to head the political opposition.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has previously claimed members of the Bolsonaro family sought US interference in Brazilian politics for personal gain, described the senator's departure as disgraceful and said he should have remained in Brazil to demonstrate his innocence. Speaking in Brasilia during his 81st birthday celebrations, Lula suggested that leaving the country secretly implied guilt, and remarked that Brazil was the Bolsonaro family's secondary home while the US was their true allegiance.

Bolsonaro, son of former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, had initially disputed the election outcome and sought to have it annulled. However, his party issued a statement on Monday accepting the results, after the conservative candidate lost by more than 4.4 million votes.

US President Donald Trump responded by questioning the legitimacy of the vote, suggesting it appeared to be rigged, though no evidence of electoral fraud has emerged. Critics noted a last-minute extension of voting hours, but Lula's win was decisive and unlikely to have been affected by it.

Democratic Representative Joaquin Castro has called on Trump to disclose to Congress whether his administration had any involvement in Bolsonaro's departure from Brazil.