Brazil's Flávio Bolsonaro leaves country after losing election

CBS News and ABC News report that Brazilian Senator Flávio Bolsonaro has left his country after losing Sunday's presidential runoff to incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a result he is contesting. CBS News says Bolsonaro, his wife and two daughters traveled through Argentina and Ecuador and reached Miami on Wednesday morning, and that Washington had signaled visas would be granted, according to a senior State Department official. President Donald Trump said that would be fine with him.

ABC News adds detail on the vote: Lula collected more than 64 million ballots against just under 60 million, a margin of nearly 4%, and is expected to be sworn in on Jan. 5, 2027. Bolsonaro said he would seek to annul the result after voting hours were stretched at both candidates' request, though ABC News notes it is unclear what legal route exists. Kassio Nunes, who heads the electoral authority, recognized the outcome.

Trump suggested without evidence that the election was rigged. Lula called Bolsonaro's departure shameful. CBS News adds that a Supreme Court order required Bolsonaro to surrender his passports, and it is unclear whether he did.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CBS News and ABC News’s reporting. Read the full story at CBS News → Also at ABC News →