Jair Bolsonaro Fast Facts and History
Jair Bolsonaro (40) is the President of Brazil
Jair Bolsonaro (40) is a far-right politician and former criminal, who has been elected as the presidential candidate of the Brazilian Workers’ Party (PT), a conservative party. The PT has been called “the party of the poor”, and Bolsonaro is the “anti-FIFA” candidate for President.
Bolsonaro has been in the spotlight since before he was elected, making controversial comments about women, LGBT people and many more issues. Some people have even called him a “fascist”, and it is estimated that Bolsonaro has spent at least £150,000 (about $240,000) campaigning for the presidential election.
Jair Bolsonaro fast facts
Birth
President Bolsonaro was born on February 12, 1967, to Helton Mello dos Santos and Isabel Barbosa (née da Silva). He is the son of three-times Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso.
Education and Career
Bolsonaro attended the USK High School of Science and Technology for five years. After graduating, he began studying at law at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, and later attended the Rio de Janeiro State University. Between 2002 and 2006 he worked as a taxi driver and in the private sector. He was a member of the Brazilian Social Movement (MSP) from 1979 to 1983.
In 2015, Bolsonaro told Portuguese language radio that if Brazil were to go to war with China, then he would go to war with it. Bolsonaro’s comments were condemned as a “racist” and he was banned from the Brazilian media.
In 2015, Bolsonaro received his first government position in the position of director of the Human Development Council (HDC), which was created by the Brazilian government in 1986. He also served as Minister of the Environment and for two terms in the Ministry of Mines and Energy, between 2012 and 2014.
In 2015, Bolsonaro was elected to the Chamber of Deputies as a member of the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSDB), representing Rio de Janeiro. In 2016 he was elected by the Chamber as an independent. He joined the new Brazilian Democratic Movement Party, known as Movimento
