Visiting former president Jair Bolsonaro in Papudinha, in Brasília, senator Carlos Portinho (PL-RJ) stated that he intended to become the party’s Senate candidate after Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ) left the race to run for Palácio do Planalto. In the conversation, according to him, the former president acknowledged his pre-candidacy, but warned that the person who will define the names that will make up the party’s ticket in Rio will be Flávio.
Portinho left the 19th Military Police Battalion in the Federal District, where the former president is being held, at around 1pm. Earlier, between 8am and 10am, senator Bruno Bonetti was also with Bolsonaro.
According to Portinho, he formalized to the former president his intention to run for one of the two Senate seats in Rio and presented himself as the name that “represents the right-wing ideological camp” in the state. The dispute in Rio de Janeiro, however, is far from consensus. Governor Cláudio Castro (PL) is named as a possible candidate, and federal deputies Carlos Jordy (PL-RJ) and Sóstenes Cavalcante (PL-RJ) are also moving internally.
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— There was no hammer dropped, but I presented my candidacy. He recognizes that my pre-candidacy represents the right-wing camp. He said that one of the vacancies is his direct recommendation, but that he needs to talk to Flávio to close the arrangement in Rio — he said.
According to the senator, the state design is linked to the presidential strategy. Bolsonaro would have reiterated that the group’s priority is to elect Flávio to the Presidency and expand the conservative bench in the Senate — the House seen as an axis of institutional confrontation from 2027 onwards.
— The focus is to elect Flávio and increase the number of seats to have a majority in the Senate. There is no point electing 41 and not having a real majority. We need aligned senators, with no tails tied, who can fulfill the role of investigating when necessary – he said.
Asked if the speech was a hint to party colleagues, such as Jordy and Sóstenes, who were recent targets of investigations related to amendments, Portinho denied it.
In the conversation, according to him, Bolsonaro also mentioned that Flávio “is doing well in the polls” and commented on the organization of the platform in different states. In Santa Catarina, he stated, the scenario would be more on track.
— Santa Catarina is resolved: Carol de Toni and Carlos Bolsonaro. As great as his affection for Senator Amin is, this is the understanding – he declared.
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Speech occurs after internal tension in the state. Last week, Carol de Toni threatened to leave the party due to a lack of definition regarding the party and even demanded a written letter from Bolsonaro stating that she would be ignored. Despite being close to the Bolsonaro family, the deputy has been raffled off by governor Jorginho Mello’s (PL) group, which aims to use the second vacancy to form a composition.
Earlier, Bonetti was also with the former president and stated that the conversation revolved around the composition of the Senate and the electoral scenario.
— He mentioned the strength of Flávio, who is doing well in the polls, but made it clear that the priority continues to be the Senate. He’s very interested in that,” he said.
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Regarding Bolsonaro’s health status, the two senators reported physical frailty. Portinho stated that the former president is under heavy medication and that, during the conversation, he needed to be assisted by a doctor.
— He is under heavy medication. During our conversation, he choked, sobbed, and the doctor came in to treat him. He’s thinner, a little groggy and he staggered when he got up,” he said.
Bonetti described the former president as dejected, although “in good spirits”.
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— He is haggard, thinner than he was six months ago, but confident that justice will come. He follows it on television and deals with the scenario one day at a time — he said.
Despite complying with a closed regime since last November, allies believe that Bolsonaro continues to act as a political reference in state decisions and in the assembly of the 2026 board, especially in disputes for the Senate, which he treats as a strategic priority. In articulation with state governments, the president of the PL, Valdemar Costa Neto, has played a central role.
