Politics · Brazil · 2 hrs ago
Flávio Bolsonaro revises false claim to be Brazil’s president-elect
Brazilian Senator Flávio Bolsonaro briefly called himself the country’s rightful president-elect after losing to President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
Lula won the runoff by more than four million votes, and Brazil’s electoral court, Bolsonaro’s own party and international leaders recognised the result.
Bolsonaro alleged election fraud without evidence, but changed the wording to call himself Brazil’s “leader” about an hour after posting the letter.
An ally said ChatGPT brought back wording from an earlier draft, as well as an outdated version of Brazil’s coat of arms.
The ally said Bolsonaro’s younger brother had used the chatbot while helping prepare the letter, though OpenAI had not immediately commented.
The claim drew ridicule and left Bolsonaro increasingly isolated, with key figures in his political camp not backing him.
Bolsonaro said he would continue opposing Lula’s government from the United States, but no further steps were specified.
Flávio Bolsonaro briefly described himself as Brazil’s “true president-elect” after losing the election to incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
He deleted the claim about an hour after posting it and issued a revised letter calling himself “leader of Brazil”.
A close ally blamed the wording on an earlier draft generated with help from ChatGPT, while saying Bolsonaro still considered the election illegitimate.
Brazilian commentators and newspapers mocked Bolsonaro’s claim and his flight to the United States.
Lula’s victory was recognised by Brazil’s federal electoral court, international observers, global leaders and Bolsonaro’s own party.
- Who
- Flávio Bolsonaro, a Brazilian senator and right-wing politician.
- What
- He briefly claimed to be Brazil’s “true president-elect”, then revised the letter to call himself “leader of Brazil”.
- When
- He posted the claim on Oct. 28; it was revised roughly an hour later.
- Where
- The letter was posted on social media; Bolsonaro was in the United States after arriving in Miami.
- Why
- His ally said ChatGPT inserted wording from an earlier draft. Bolsonaro’s camp said he did not recognise the election result.
Bolsonaro’s camp
Lula’s supporters and election-recognising institutions
Election legitimacy
Bolsonaro’s camp
Bolsonaro’s ally said Bolsonaro considered the election illegitimate and would continue fighting the result.
Lula’s supporters and election-recognising institutions
Lula’s victory was recognised by Brazil’s federal electoral court, international observers, global leaders and Bolsonaro’s own party.
Brazil held the runoff election, which Lula won by more than four million votes, according to the Straits Times.
Flávio Bolsonaro arrived in Miami after leaving Brazil and posted a letter claiming to be the country’s “true president-elect”.
Bolsonaro deleted the letter and published a revised version calling himself “leader of Brazil”.
Bolsonaro ally Paulo Figueiredo said ChatGPT had included wording from an earlier draft.
- Election margin
- Lula beat Bolsonaro by more than four million votes, according to the Straits Times.
- Claim duration
- Roughly an hour
- Revised title
- Leader of Brazil
- Alleged AI tool
- OpenAI’s ChatGPT
- Destination
- Miami, United States
3 sources
What people are saying
When generating the document, AI ended up including an earlier version of the text, in which Flavio presented himself as the true ‘president-elect’
In the end, the essential is expressed precisely by Flavio: These elections were illegitimate, he does not recognise the result, and he will continue fighting to restore democracy in Brazil
[This letter] seems to have been written by a foolhardy, loony halfwit
Posts on X
“A letter that seems to have been penned by a foolhardy, loony halfwit”