Sunday's presidential election has moved Brazil closer to becoming the missing piece in a bloc of Latin American allies for President Trump, potentially reshaping the region's security landscape, the New York Times reports. Flávio Bolsonaro, son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, led the first round of voting and heads into an Oct. 25 runoff as the favorite against President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Trump has sought to lock in such an alliance that could increase US sway in the region. "You were on your own," he told his Latin American allies at the United Nations in a speech last month. "You're not on your own anymore."
Brazil's voters also delivered a strong showing for the right in Congress and in state governments, handing the Bolsonaro family four more federal seats. If Flávio wins, Latin America's largest country would likely join Trump's expanding group of right-leaning partners backing his intensified "war on drugs," which has included sanctions, 71 lethal boat strikes, and the labeling of 21 criminal groups as terrorist organizations. The Trump administration also considers Latin America's cooperation central to its immigration agenda, an analyst told NPR.
Flávio Bolsonaro has pledged to bring Brazil into the US-led Shield of the Americas coalition and deepen cooperation against gangs, while publicly backing Trump and previously pushing Washington to tag Brazilian gangs as terrorists. Supporters say the emerging network of right-wing governments in the region could strengthen intelligence sharing and financial crackdowns on cartels, per the Times; others warn it risks eroding civil liberties, entrenching US military influence, and pressuring Latin American sovereignty—especially as Bolsonaro praises El Salvador's Nayib Bukele and proposes tougher prisons and harsher penalties at home.
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