Bolsonaro fans flock to ex-president's Florida hideout

The gated community of Encore Resort in Kissimmee, Florida, is filled with rows of clean-cut grey homes and palm trees.

Normally a placid place, it has been anything but quiet the last few weeks.

Since the end of December, one of the nearly cookie-cutter identical houses has been occupied by a man of great international interest.

The ex-Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro left the country and made his way last month to the picturesque Florida resort near Disney World, where, he said, he was visiting friends and family.

The right-wing leader was also said to have escaped to Florida to avoid having to hand over his title to his successor, Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva, who won October's election.

As Brazil faces the fallout from pro-Bolsonaro rioters who stormed the presidential palace in Brasilia on 8 January, the former president's fans have been flocking to his Florida hideout.

They have one thing in common: they don't believe the results of the election, either.

Vanessa Viana, 45, an Uber driver from Sao Paulo, waited all morning on Tuesday and said she was planning to stay as long as it takes to see him.

She's been sitting on the pavement across the home, sheltering from the sun in some shade. Her friends came this weekend and took some pictures with Mr Bolsonaro, so she wants one too, she said.

Wondering if she'd see him today, she approached the home to speak to one of the security guards sitting outside, but walked back with no word of Mr Bolsonaro's whereabouts.

"I believe in what he believes," she said. What she doesn't believe in, she adds, is the election results that made Lula president for a third time.

"I can't believe someone would vote for a guy who went to jail."

The newly re-elected president had been serving time on charges of money laundering and corruption. But in 2021 the Supreme Court annulled the charges and restored his political rights, ruling that the judge in his case had no jurisdiction to try him.

His victory in October after a bitter, close contest ended with Mr Bolsonaro leaving Brazil for Florida ahead of Lula's swearing in. While Mr Bolsonaro did not explicitly concede defeat, he did authorise the government's transition.

A fifth of Brazilians living in the US reside in Florida - the biggest share of any other state. Orlando, close to Mr Bolsonaro's temporary home, has at least 30,000 Brazilian residents, according to the Orlando City Hall.

And in Kissimmee, Mr Bolsonaro has picked a welcoming hideout.

In the weeks he has been here, he has been seen eating at a KFC, wandering around a supermarket and meeting supporters outside the vacation home.

One TikTok user, Mickey Mouse ears in tow, couldn't believe she was meeting Mr Bolsonaro on her way to Disney. Another user captioned his video of the former president with "Bolsonaro 2026".

He had a brief hospital stay for abdominal pain, and it is unclear if he is back at the Encore Resort house.

Fans keep arriving at the home, now in smaller numbers. Some come bearing flowers and others, like Ms Viana, come with shirts and paraphernalia for him to sign.

In southern Florida, Brazilian expats largely support Mr Bolsonaro over Lula, according to reports from October's election. Some insist Mr Bolsonaro will keep Brazil from becoming socialist or communist.

Phillippe, a 56-year-old from Brasilia, was having lunch at the local Brazilian supermarket. Floridian weather like Brazil's tropical heat attracted him to settle here some years ago. He had also heard it was like a "Little Brazil" in this corner of the country.

Behind him, the television blared with a news channel from his home country.

"The government that is in power and in charge now - that's not the real president of Brazil," Phillippe said, pointing towards the TV.

"Bolsonaro fights for the people of Brazil," Phillippe said. "I call him a Brazilian patriot because he wants something better for the nation."

Mr Bolsonaro's retreat to Florida may be ending, however,

It is believed he entered the US on an A Visa, reserved for diplomats and heads of state. The visa allows individuals to stay in the US for up to 30 days.

At a state department press briefing on Monday, spokesman Ned Price did not verify Mr Bolsonaro's visa status, but outlined that if an A Visa holder is no longer engaged in official business on behalf of their government, "it is incumbent of that visa holder to depart the US or to request a change to another immigration status".

The Biden administration said it hasn't received any requests from Brazil to send Mr Bolsonaro back home, but has faced mounting pressure from lawmakers to do something about him.