▲ Former President Jair Bolsonaro
"The Trump family looks like gentle residents compared to the Bolsonaro family." This was the headline of an article published by the German weekly Stern.
On October 1, the Brazilian daily Folha de S.Paulo cited Stern to highlight the immense influence the Bolsonaro family holds over Brazilian politics.
According to the report, 18 people from the Bolsonaro family are running in the upcoming presidential and congressional elections scheduled for October 4.
Among them, eight are immediate family members and relatives of former President Jair Bolsonaro, including his wife, sons, and brother.
His eldest son, Senator Flávio, is running as the Liberal Party (PL) presidential candidate and is locked in a tight race with the Workers' Party (PT) candidate, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Meanwhile, his second son, Carlos, and fourth son, Renan, have respectively launched bids for the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies.
His wife, Michelle, is running for the Senate, and his brother, Renato, is running for the Chamber of Deputies.
Stern criticized, "The only 'Bolsonaro' who has not stepped into politics is (Jair's) 15-year-old daughter, Laura."
This all-out political challenge by members of the Bolsonaro family is pointed out as being even more direct than that of the Trump family, which exerts strong influence in U.S. politics.
While Trump family members—such as President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, eldest daughter Ivanka, and eldest son Donald Trump Jr.—have wielded powerful influence around the White House, members of the Bolsonaro family are stepping into the political forefront much more aggressively by running en masse in direct elections.
Brazilian sociologist Débora Messenberg pointed out, "Eight members of a single family running for office simultaneously is likely a world record."
Stern noted that massive "political hereditary dynasties" like the Bolsonaro family are virtually unprecedented in global political history, comparing them to other prominent political families such as France's far-right Le Pen family and the U.S. Republican Bush family.
The outlet also reported in detail on presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro.
Unlike right-wing leaders in the Americas such as President Trump or Argentine President Javier Milei, who entered the establishment as political "outsiders," Stern targeted Flávio by calling him "the embodiment of the establishment," adding, "He was able to become a senator because he is Jair's son. Politically, he has shown nothing other than his last name."
It added, "Lula went from being a factory worker to president, but Flávio went from being a president's son to a presidential candidate."
On October 1, three days ahead of the presidential election, Brazil's prosecutor-general officially requested a police investigation into allegations that the U.S. administration attempted to use government funds to support right-wing civic groups in Brazil.
This came just a day after the British daily The Guardian reported that the Trump administration planned to provide 1 million dollars (approx. 1.36 billion won) to civil society organizations opposing Brazil's Federal Supreme Court.
President Lula, who is running neck-and-neck with Senator Flávio Bolsonaro in the presidential race, has consistently claimed U.S. interference in the election.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
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