Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro endorsed his son Flavio's 2026 presidential bid on Thursday in a statement from a hospital where he underwent a double hernia surgery that doctors said went smoothly.
The procedure lasted about 3.5 hours and was completed without complications, according to the medical team at the DF Star Hospital. Doctors said in a statement that Bolsonaro "will continue with postoperative care, including pain management, physical therapy and prevention of venous thrombosis."
Bolsonaro, who has been hospitalized since Wednesday, has been serving a 27-year prison sentence since November for an attempted coup.
He was granted court permission to leave prison after federal police doctors confirmed that he needed the procedure. Police were ordered to stay outside his room where computers and mobile phones were prohibited.
Doctors said Bolsonaro's double hernia caused him pain. The former leader, who was in power between 2019 and 2022, has undergone several other operations since he was stabbed in the abdomen during a campaign rally in 2018.
