If you don’t keep up with Brazilian politics, you could be forgiven for thinking that, after losing October’s election to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Jair Bolsonaro is no longer Brazil’s president.
But, in actual fact, the new head of state only takes office on January 1, meaning that Mr. Bolsonaro is still in charge, currently in the middle of his final two months as president. However, he’s nowhere to be seen.
Since losing the tight election at the end of October, he has entered a period of silence, even spending a total of 20 days away from the Planalto Palace in November.
Reportedly devastated, Mr. Bolsonaro’s silence is something rarely witnessed during his almost four years in office. Instead of creating controversy on camera, riling up his radical support with far-right dog whistles, or attacking members of the press, Brazil’s head of state is stuck in something of a personal limbo.
For him, a second election victory, especially against Lula, would have been more important than his entire time in government.
In the wake of the election, numerous small groups of pro-Bolsonaro radicals staged putschist protests at points all over the country, demanding the Army step in to cancel the vote result and keep Mr. Bolsonaro in the presidency. At first, the head of state’s silence was seen as a tactical move, and tacit support for anti-democratic protesters. But now, even the most fervent putschist demonstrators are beginning to ask questions, desperately craving guidance, and wondering whether the president has given up on them.
This is a delicate moment for Jair Bolsonaro. Defeated, he has to work out what to do next. Any hopes of a coup have dissolved into thin air, so the president needs to start planning his return in 2026. His first step, it seems, will be to establish himself as the premier figurehead of Brazil’s right-wing, which managed a strong result in congressional and gubernatorial elections. But, in order to do that, he has to show his face, or at the very least, open his mouth.
Until then, there is a month to go until the current presidential term is over and Lula takes office. The question is: will we see Bolsonaro again until then?
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