Two US state department officials led a campaign to restore Brazil’s right-wing Bolsonaro clan to power and pushed sanctions intended to tilt the presidential election in its favour, according to 10 current and former US officials with direct knowledge of the matter. Senator Flavio Bolsonaro was facing leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a tight run-off Sunday.
Before campaigning began, Beattie and Pita told US diplomats that Washington’s policy was to restore Jair Bolsonaro as Brazil’s leader, although he had been disqualified from office for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 election to Lula, three sources said. After Bolsonaro received a 27-year sentence in Sept 2025, they shifted support to his son Flavio and instructed embassy staff not to engage with rival conservative contenders, the sources said. Beattie is a former White House speechwriter fired in 2018 after addressing an event frequented by white nationalists. In early 2025, the Bolsonaro family lobbied for sanctions against Moraes under Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. Sanctions were imposed in July 2025 over alleged free-speech violations.
State department spokesman Tommy Pigott did not address questions about Beattie and Pita but said: “All actions taken by US against narco-traffickers and to protect free speech are to defend the rights and lives of the American people. Orna Blum, who led state department’s Brazil and Southern Cone office until retiring last year over opposition to Trump administration, said Washington had the right to pursue its interests but added: “But when American foreign policy instruments are used to pressure another democracy over the legal fate of a political ally, the line between diplomacy and political intervention has been crossed. He developed “free speech diplomacy”, aimed at punishing countries accused of censoring right-wing speech. Moraes, who did not respond to Reuters, has said he was combating fake news that undermined faith in democratic institutions. Jair Bolsonaro’s younger son Eduardo visited Beattie in Washington around April, two former officials said. Beattie then appealed to treasury department’s office of foreign assets control for sanctions, a former official said. Treasury secretary Scott Bessent offered no opposition, the official said.
The officials were Darren Beattie, senior adviser for Western Hemisphere Affairs overseeing Brazil policy, and Ricardo Pita, another senior adviser promoted this year to deputy assistant secretary for North America. Reuters could not determine whether they acted on orders from White House or secretary of state Marco Rubio. President Trump, a defender of former president Jair Bolsonaro, has not publicly endorsed any Brazilian candidate. The Brazilian people have the right to choose their leaders through free and fair elections. White House declined to comment, while Lula’s office did not respond to requests. Washington accused Moraes of violating free-speech rights by jailing Brazilians over political social-media posts and censoring US platforms.