Target of criticism from Eduardo Bolsonaro (PL) for the lack of engagement in his brother’s presidential pre-candidacy, the federal deputy (-MG) cited the senator (PL-RJ) in just 10 of the 544 posts he made on X (formerly) since he started his pre-campaign, four months ago.
Mentions of Flávio represent less than 2% of the content shared by Nikolas on his main timeline from December 5, 2025 until April 9, according to a survey by Sheet.
Low engagement in the presidential campaign has become a source of conflict on the right. Part of the Bolsonarists, mainly the group linked to Eduardo, accuses the parliamentarian of hiding the senator in . Nikolas and his allies argue that his role is different, to wear down the president (PT) and increase mobilization around conservative agendas.
The survey of Sheet analyzed only the content of Nikolas’s profile on The deputy also made 80 posts on Instagram during the period.
Before Eduardo’s public criticism, on the 4th, Nikolas had only made six posts about Flávio. After the clash, he commented four more times in a period of four days, with content reflecting moments in which he supported the pre-candidacy and the .
He also shared a video in which Flávio calls for pacification and an excerpt from an interview in which the pre-candidate states to a podcast that Nikolas “is a digital powerhouse”, that he “is with me 100%” and that he helps by “exposing the PT” and going viral.
Before the fight, there were six posts. In February, he released a photo sitting next to Flávio at a PL event, news that the senator had signed the request for impeachment of minister Dias Toffoli, of the STF (Supreme Federal Court), and an excerpt from an interview in which he said he supported the candidacy, at a time when criticism was beginning to emerge that he was not getting involved.
“In the last 10 days, in all interviews, I made it clear: Flávio is the candidate chosen by President Bolsonaro and will have my support,” he wrote.
the deputy said that the former president’s decision “carries an urgent request for national pacification”. The following day, he praised the senator’s movement for amnesty. Afterwards, he shared research that placed the pre-candidate ahead of the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), who was considered for the dispute.
At the beginning of April, he and he had a conflict. Son 03 stated that Nikolas was disrespecting his family and accused him of using his digital influence to amplify profiles contrary to Bolsonarism.
“Months have passed and you continue to put Flavio in a spiral of silence, with less than half a dozen public supports, just to pretend not to have abandoned the political group that projected you. You continue to demand that your group not support and publicize Flávio, except when it becomes so blatant that you start to be charged”, wrote Eduardo to Nikolas in X.
The public discussion was sparked by a video from influencer Kim Paim, who said that the Minas Gerais parliamentarian would only share posts from accounts critical of Flávio. This would be working as a way for the deputy to lend his reach on social media to profiles contrary to the chosen candidate.
The specific case was related to the Space Liberdade profile, which has 446.9 thousand followers and said it would not vote for Flávio in the first round. Nikolas usually interacts with this profile and shared at least 25 posts in the period analyzed — two of them after the disagreement.
Eduardo’s post generated a public debate among Bolsonarists. “Nikolas has been training the algorithm for a long time to give visibility to everyone who hates Bolsonarism,” wrote federal deputy and former Bolsonaro Secretary of Culture Mario Frias (PL-SP).
Senator Jorge Seif (PL-SC) shared a verse from the Bible: “Whoever is not with me is against me!”.
The topic has already been the subject of debate on other occasions in the PL. The party president, , has defended Nikolas’ role on other fronts, such as raising agendas to be debated online and attracting votes inside and outside Minas Gerais, which helps the party to elect more deputies.
The deputy from Minas has stated that his main function is to engage voters in conservative agendas and wear down Lula, as
“Rejection will define this election. Defend ideas and convince people. And for that the campaign needs to be intelligent and not just monotonous posts that add little”, replied a follower on Instagram about the best strategy to elect Flávio.
A Sheet He sought the deputy’s advice since Thursday (16), but he did not comment on the survey.
The announcement by the president of Congress, Davi Alcolumbre (União Brasil-AP), about the vote on April 30 for those convicted of the coup acts was seen in the party as a trump card by Nikolas. The date was set the day after they talked about the matter.
Some PL politicians say that this strengthened Nikolas and could shield him from new offensives by the Bolsonaro clan. Conflict is also used as a strategy to increase digital reach.
