Bolsonaro split exposes dispute for Senate in SP and affects Eduardo Bolsonaro; understand

The dispute over Senate seats in São Paulo opened a new front of conflict within Bolsonarism. Former federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro and former minister Ricardo Salles spent the weekend exchanging public accusations amid discussions for the 2026 election.

The clash gained dimension after Salles stated, in an interview with the podcast IronTalksthat Eduardo would have given up his candidacy for the Senate through a financial agreement. According to the former minister, allies speculate values ​​between R$20 million and R$60 million so that the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro would give up the dispute and support the president of the Legislative Assembly of São Paulo, André do Prado.

Salles did not present documents or public evidence to support the accusation. Even so, the speech quickly circulated among groups linked to the São Paulo right-wing and increased internal wear and tear in the Bolsonaro camp.

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Declaration was made amid the friction between Bolsonaro supporters caused by the appointment of André do Prado to form the re-election ticket of governor Tarcísio de Freitas

Eduardo reacted on social media and announced a direct response to the former minister. “Regrettable, but necessary”, he wrote on X when announcing that he would publish a video on the topic. In another post, he mocked the accusation by sharing content that questioned Salles’ change in stance.

In the video released later, Eduardo accused the former minister of getting close to political opponents and criticized his electoral composition in São Paulo. He also stated that Salles has attacked sectors of the Centrão while avoiding confrontations with vice-president Geraldo Alckmin.

The crisis occurs at a time when the PL is trying to organize its electoral strategy in the largest electoral college in the country. The party works to define competitive names for the Senate and the São Paulo government, while trying to avoid divisions between allies of former president Jair Bolsonaro.

Behind the scenes, Eduardo’s departure from the Senate race was already causing noise among sectors of the São Paulo right-wing. Some of Salles’ allies defended that the former president’s son remained as the main Bolsonarist name in the state.

In videos that began to circulate on social media, Ricardo Salles alternates recent criticisms of Eduardo with old statements in which he defended his stay in the United States. In one of the excerpts, he states that the former deputy “made his own return to Brazil impossible” after statements made outside the country.

The former minister also claimed priority space in the composition of the São Paulo ticket. According to him, one of the Senate seats would be reserved for his political group, while the other would be linked to governor Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans).