Flávio Nantes Bolsonaro (born 30 April 1981) is a Brazilian lawyer and politician serving as a Senator for Rio de Janeiro since 2019. A son of the 38th president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, he is affiliated with the Liberal Party (PL). He previously served as a state deputy of Rio de Janeiro from 2003 to 2019.
As a state deputy, Bolsonaro held the presidency of the Special Committee on Family Planning. His political career culminated in his election to the senate in 2018, where he garnered 4.38 million votes. Like his father, his political career has been marked by controversial statements. Bolsonaro is the PL candidate in the 2026 Brazilian presidential election with the endorsement of his father.
Contents
Early life and education
Bolsonaro was born in Resende, Rio de Janeiro, at the Military Academy of Agulhas Negras, to Jair Bolsonaro and Rogéria Nantes Braga. He graduated from Candido Mendes University with a bachelor of laws degree. He holds specializations in public policy from the University Research Institute of Rio de Janeiro and in entrepreneurship from the Getúlio Vargas Foundation.
Political career
State Deputy (2003–2019)
Bolsonaro was elected to his first term in the 2002 Brazilian general election. He was re-elected as a state deputy in 2006, 2010, and in his last candidacy, in 2014, for the 2015–2019 period. In April 2015, he voted in favor of the appointment of Domingos Brazão to the Rio de Janeiro State Court of Accounts, an appointment that was heavily criticized at the time. Brazão would later be accused of being the mastermind behind the assassination of Marielle Franco.
On April 12, 2016, Bolsonaro and his bodyguard, who is also a military police officer, exchanged gunfire with two robbers who were holding up a car ahead of them in Rio de Janeiro's West Zone. One of the assailants was injured and fled on a motorcycle. Like other members of the Bolsonaro family, he opposes what he calls "the media exploitation of human rights enforcement for the benefit of crime and criminals."
In December 2018, the newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo revealed that a report from the Council for Financial Activities Control (COAF) had identified an atypical movement of R$ 1.2 million in an account in the name of Fabrício Queiroz, a former aide to Bolsonaro. This marked the beginning of the "rachadinhas case" and led the Rio de Janeiro Public Prosecutor's Office to open an investigation that lasted two years. The probe resulted in charges for the crimes of fraud, embezzlement, money laundering, and criminal organization being filed against Bolsonaro, Queiroz, and 15 other individuals involved.
In 2021, the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) annulled the previous rulings on the case involving Queiroz and Bolsonaro. The evidence obtained by breaking the banking, tax, and telephone secrecy of the investigated parties—which had been used to support the Public Prosecutor's charges—was invalidated.
Candidacy for Mayor of Rio de Janeiro (2016)
On July 23, at the Social Christian Party (PSC) convention held at the Bangu Atlético Clube, Bolsonaro officially launched his candidacy for mayor of Rio de Janeiro. The event was attended by the party's national president, Pastor Everaldo, and his father, Congressman Jair Bolsonaro. In his speech, he stated, "Our candidacy is a protest against everything that exists today. Governing is about setting priorities. And the big question is what Rio de Janeiro will be like after the Olympics. Only an independent person, outside this corrupt old political scheme, will have the freedom to make real changes."
In the 2016 elections, he ran for mayor of Rio de Janeiro and finished in 4th place with 424,307 votes, representing 14% of the valid votes. He did not advance to the runoff, contested by Marcelo Crivella (PRB) and Marcelo Freixo (PSOL), but finished ahead of candidates such as federal congressmen Indio da Costa (PSD), Jandira Feghali (PCdoB), and Alessandro Molon (REDE), among four others. Despite the defeat, he succeeded in getting his brother, Carlos Bolsonaro, elected as the most voted city councilor in Rio de Janeiro. During the first mayoral debate hosted by Band, he fell ill and had to leave the event in the second segment. He reportedly refused medical assistance offered by then-Congresswoman Jandira Feghali.
Like his father, Bolsonaro is known for controversial stances. In an April 2011 interview, while defending his father's positions, he argued they promoted "family" values and ethical principles. That same month, in an interview with O Estado de S. Paulo, he defended the Brazilian military dictatorship, claiming, "Back then there was security, quality healthcare and education, there was respect. Today, what rights do people have? Just to vote. And they still vote poorly." He also stated there had been no dictatorship, characterizing the period as "a transition to democracy." Additionally, Bolsonaro supports the death penalty and lowering the age of criminal responsibility.
Senator of Rio de Janeiro (2019–present)
In the 2018 elections, Bolsonaro ran for Senator from the state of Rio de Janeiro for the Social Liberal Party (PSL). The then state deputy's candidacy was announced at the PSL's national convention, held on July 22, 2018, in a convention center in Rio de Janeiro. At the same event, the Jair Bolsonaro 2018 presidential campaign was formalized. In the election, Bolsonaro received 4,380,418 votes (31.36% of the total valid votes), being elected for the 56th legislature (2019–2023) of the Brazilian Federal Senate. On February 6, 2019, he was elected 3rd Secretary of the Senate's Board of Directors. On June 11, 2019, President Jair Bolsonaro awarded him the medal of the Order of Naval Merit during a ceremony commemorating the Battle of Riachuelo at the Brasília Marine Corps Group, located on the shores of Lake Paranoá.
2026 presidential campaign
On December 5, 2025, Bolsonaro publicly announced his candidacy for president in the 2026 Brazilian general election, stating he had received the nomination from his father during a visit to the prison where the latter is being held at the Federal Police headquarters in Brasília. In a statement released on his social media, the senator declared: "It is with great responsibility that I confirm the decision of Brazil's greatest political and moral leader, Jair Messias Bolsonaro, to entrust me with the mission of continuing our national project."
The decision was communicated beforehand to the Liberal Party (PL) and the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicanos), who until then was the main candidate expected to be Jair Bolsonaro's choice in the elections, signaling that he would run for the presidency while Tarcísio is likely to focus on reelection. The announcement generated positive reactions among Bolsonarist allies, including federal congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro (PL), who expressed support for his brother, and the national president of the PL, Valdemar Costa Neto, who endorsed the choice.
Following the announcement of his candidacy, the financial market reacted negatively. The dollar surged by over 2%, while the São Paulo Stock Exchange plummeted by 4.11%, in contrast to the all-time high it had reached just days before. As of May 2026, he is polling second place. Bolsonaro's candidacy is supported internationally by President of Argentina Javier Milei, the President of Colombia Abelardo de la Espriella, and the government of the United States.
