Flavio Bolsonaro Launches Brazil Presidential Bid, Backed by Netanyahu and Milei

On Saturday, Flavio Bolsonaro – the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro and long‑time darling of Brazil’s far‑right – stepped onto a stage in São Paulo and declared the start of his presidential campaign. The event, held at the Liberal Party’s headquarters, felt less like a routine party meeting and more like a rally, with the candidate calling the moment “the beginning of the toughest battles of our life, a fight between good and evil.”

What set the launch apart, however, was the chorus of applause coming from abroad. Argentina’s fire‑brand president Javier Milei flew in the night before, took a photo holding a national football jersey next to Flavio’s Brazilian flag, and then delivered a blunt, anti‑socialist speech that painted Lula as a threat to freedom. “We will continue offering our testimony everywhere against the lies of socialism,” Milei said, adding that Bolsonaro could “save Brazil.”

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, unable to attend in person, sent a short video message. “Flavio, my friend, congratulations on the official launching of your campaign,” he said, praising Bolsonaro as “a great champion of Brazil” and of the friendship between the two peoples.

Inside Brazil, the reaction was more muted. Apart from a handful of right‑wing allies, most established politicians stayed away, and the centre‑right parties kept a cautious distance. Even Flavio’s own father, Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a 27‑year sentence for a failed coup attempt after his 2022 defeat, appeared only as a pre‑recorded AI‑generated video.

Polls continue to show Flavio trailing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the 80‑year‑old incumbent who will hold his own Workers’ Party convention on August 2 to confirm his re‑election bid. The younger Bolsonaro’s campaign has also been tangled in controversy, from accusations of leaning on former U.S. President Donald Trump for support to repeating unfounded doubts about Brazil’s electoral system – a tactic that could be used to dispute results should he lose.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s election authority has already turned away two Trump‑era officials who tried to secure visas to discuss “freedom of expression” related to the vote, underscoring the sensitivity around foreign involvement. As the campaign season ramps up, Flavio Bolsonaro faces the challenge of turning foreign applause into domestic votes, while navigating a political landscape still haunted by the spectre of 2022’s contested showdown.