Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has signaled he intends to support his eldest son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, as a presidential candidate in the 2026 election, his political party said.
The head of Jair Bolsonaro's right-wing Liberal Party, Valdemar Costa Neto, told Reuters he had heard from the senator that the former president had "ratified his candidacy".
CNN Brasil reported, citing unnamed sources, that the right-wing leader offered his support to his eldest son during a visit to the federal police offices in Brasilia where he is serving his sentence for plotting a coup.
News of Flavio Bolsonaro's plans hit Brazilian markets this afternoon, with the country's currency weakening around 2% against the US dollar BRBY and the benchmark stock index Bovespa .BVSP down 3%.
Some investors had been betting on Jair Bolsonaro backing a market-friendly name with executive experience, such as Sao Paulo Governor Tarcisio de Freitas, his former minister, to challenge leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva next year.
"The market sees Flavio as a weaker candidate than Tarcisio in a race against Lula," said Laís Costa, an analyst at Empiricus Research.
Jair Bolsonaro has been barred from running for office since June 2023, when Brazil's federal electoral court (TSE) condemned the right-wing leader for his conduct during the 2022 election.
In September, the former president was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 presidential election to President Lula.
