An analysis of PSL political party campaign finances showed that Jair Bolsonaro's presidential campaign in 2018 was more expensive than he declared to the Electoral Court. It was also funded in part by public money, which he has always denied using.
The documents show that at least R$ 420,000 - part of which, public funds from the electoral fund - were used to make 10.8 million saints, stickers, pamphlets, and other materials for the Bolsonaro campaign, either alone or in conjunction with other PSL candidates.
The number may be higher, as in some situations invoices list the electoral material produced without specifying which candidates have benefited.
This R$ 420,000 is equivalent to 17% of the R$ 2.46 million that Bolsonaro declared to court as spending his campaign.
Despite handing over the invoices to the courts, the PSL state directorates in these cases did not link the spending directly to the Bolsonaro campaign. Nor did the president declare in his account the receipt of the saints.
Sought, neither the Planalto Palace nor the five state directories (MG, PR, RN, AM, and RJ) wanted to speak up.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon