The ex-President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, was allowed temporary release from a federal detention facility to undergo a medical operation for an inguinal hernia on Thursday.
According to members close to the Bolsonaro family, the operation was “successful” and “went without complications.”
Bolsonaro, 70, is currently serving a 27-year sentence for orchestrating an “attempted coup” following a presidential defeat in 2023. The former president was convicted by the nation’s Supreme Federal Court in September in Brasília.
The trial earned the attention of U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington, exacerbating a diplomatic spat between the Trump administration and the government of Brazilian President Lula da Silva over Washington’s accusations of political persecution and free speech censorship.
Last week, Brazil's Senate passed a controversial bill reducing Bolsonaro's prison sentence by a 48-25 vote, sparking harsh opposition from the Left-wing elements of the legislative body towards allied President Lula, accusing the president of making a “backroom deal” with opposition conservative party members to help facilitate the passage of the Lula administration’s budget proposal.
Elder Bolsonaro Backs Son, Flavio, for 2026 Presidential Run
On early Thursday morning, the son of ex-President Jair Bolsonaro, Flavio, 44, announced that his father sent him a personal letter appointing him to take over his father’s Liberal Party (PL, Partido Liberal) movement—a center-right conservative populist party platform—and run as the party’s candidate for the 2026 presidential election against Lula da Silva, whose seeking a fourth nonconsecutive presidential term.
Flavio, before reporters on Thursday, read his father’s letter tapping him as successor, allaying past confusion over the possible heir of the Bolsonaro movement, stating:
“He represents the continuation of the path of prosperity that I began well before becoming president, as I believe we must restore the responsibility of leading Brazil with justice, resolve and loyalty to the aspirations of the Brazilian people”, wrote ex-President Jair Bolsonaro.
