Buenos Aires, Argentina – During a gala at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington D.C. on Wednesday, Argentina’s President Javier Milei once again threw his support behind Flávio Bolsonaro, the right-wing candidate in Brazil’s run-off elections on October 25. The event was attended by businessmen, investors, and figures close to the United States Republican Party.
During the meeting, Milei was recognized for his “leadership and global impact” and from the stage, called Bolsonaro’s opponent, current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a “communist dictator.”
Additionally, he predicted that Flávio would win the second round of elections and anticipated that the right would paint the “continent blue.”
Standing next to Milei was Eduardo Bolsonaro, the third son of former President Jair Bolsonaro and Flávio’s brother. Eduardo has been living in the U.S. since 2025 and in June was convicted in absentia by Brazil’s Supreme Court of lobbying the U.S. government to interfere in the trial of his father, who was ordered to serve 27 years in prison for attempting a coup after he lost to Lula in the 2022 presidential elections.
The Argentine head of state dedicated a few minutes of his speech to the elder Bolsonaro, stating that his 27-year prison sentence was unjust and vengeful.
Milei concluded by defending his government’s economic policies, highlighting the Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI), and promised that his first term would end with a 16% growth in Argentina’s economy.
“Let’s make all of America great again,” he told the audience, referring as well to South America.
Reinforcing ties between the Argentine government and U.S. right
This is not the first time Milei has publicly supported the Brazilian right-wing candidate.
On July 25, at the Liberal Party convention in São Paulo, Brazil where Flávio was officially announced as a candidate, the Argentine president attended the event and stated, “There is no one else capable of ending the Lula Risk,” calling the president a “prisoner” and a “thief.”
These statements provoked a strong diplomatic clash that lasted for several weeks and escalated to the point where Brazil withdrew its ambassador from Argentina and downgraded the bilateral relationship to the level of a ‘charge d’affaires,’ an unprecedented move.
Days ahead of Brazil’s elections, Milei’s statements in Washington show the right’s dream of a “blue wave” in the region. (Unlike in the U.S., in Latin America, the blue wave is associated with rightwing political parties).
Featured Image: Eduardo Bolsonaro and Javier Milei at a gala at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington D.C. on October 14, 2026.
Image credit: Javier Milei via Instagram
