Flávio Bolsonaro announces his running mate for Brazil's October election in a bid against Lula

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RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazilian presidential candidate Flávio Bolsonaro on Wednesday picked his running mate, a lawmaker from his party who will run for vice president in the October election after centrist parties largely failed to endorse his candidacy or opted to stay neutral in the race.

The senator and a son of former President Jair Bolsonaro was confirmed as the presidential candidate of his father’s Liberal Party last month. He will run against incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the two could go into a runoff if neither gets a majority vote.

But unlike his father, the younger Bolsonaro does not have the support of centrist parties in Brazil from which a vice-presidential candidate would have been expected. That lack of support has compounded his difficulties in choosing a running mate.

Alfredo Gaspar has been a member of Brazil’s lower house since 2023. Before that, he worked as a prosecutor and served as secretary of public security of the northeastern state of Alagoas.

“He is someone I’ve come to admire, and everyone here has come to admire him as well – for his courage, his honesty, and his track record in public security,” Flávio Bolsonaro said.

In his speech, Gaspar thanked Flávio Bolsonaro for trusting him and committed to their joint project, describing himself as a “simple person, someone from the northeast, but someone with a life story marked by a great deal of hard work.”

Bolsonaro had tried but failed to win over Agriculture Minister Tereza Cristina, who would have been a high-profile female running mate. His political movement has historically suffered from lower support from women voters.

Cristina's party has a stronghold in Congress and was key for Jair Bolsonaro’s presidency. It was not expected to field a presidential candidate and its distancing from the younger Bolsonaro has been surprising.

Since announcing that he had been chosen by his father to run in the election against Lula, Flávio Bolsonaro has run into a series of obstacles.

Support for his bid started to wane in May, after he admitted he had requested millions of dollars from jailed banker Daniel Vorcaro to pay for a film about his father’s life, a revelation that shocked many allies.

Bolsonaro then visited the White House and the U.S. State Department, touting his family's ties with U.S. President Donald Trump.

However, many voters, business leaders and politicians now blame him for the new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on some Brazilian exports of up to 37.5%.

In June, Bolsonaro faced another blow: His stepmother recorded a video to say he had been disrespectful to her. They have since made amends.

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