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Flavio Bolsonaro Uses Supreme Court Feud to Rally Support on Independence Day

The Paulista Avenue demonstration casts a public spat between two top justices as proof of political persecution and seeks to shift momentum in a tied presidential race.

Brazilian presidential candidate Flavio Bolsonaro of the Liberal Party (PL) speaks at a campaign rally in Porto Alegre, Brazil September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Diego Vara/File Photo
The pro-Bolsonaro rally featured a huge US President Donald Trump float

Overview

  • The rally drew an estimated 28,500 people on Monday to São Paulo's Paulista Avenue as Senator Flavio Bolsonaro called for President Lula's removal and for Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes to be investigated.
  • Justice Andre Mendonca released a report alleging contacts between Moraes and a banker accused in a multibillion-dollar fraud, and Moraes has asked investigators to examine Mendonca for possible abuse of authority.
  • A Quaest poll published on Monday showed Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro tied at 41% each in a potential October runoff, making symbolic events and judicial accusations more politically charged.
  • Organizers and speakers framed the protest as a response to perceived persecution of former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is under house arrest after a 2025 conviction for a 2023 coup plot, while turnout fell short of the large crowds the elder Bolsonaro once drew.
  • The court clash has broadened the campaign narrative by turning internal judicial disclosures into public political ammunition, a development that could increase pressure for investigations of Moraes and reshape voter mobilization before October voting.