One year before the presidential election in Brazil, incumbent Jair Bolsonaro joined the right-wing Liberal Party (PL).
"Accession is a simple matter, but of great importance," said the right-wing radical head of state in the capital Brasília on Tuesday.
Bolsonaro changed party affiliation for the ninth time, which is nothing unusual in Brazil.
With his membership in the PL, the 66-year-old wants to preserve the chances of being re-elected in October 2022; an application for the office of president without party affiliation is not permitted in Brazil.
Numerous requests for impeachment
Bolsonaro is currently only getting around 22 percent approval in the polls, making it more unpopular than ever since he took office.
Above all, his compatriots accuse him of careless handling of the corona pandemic;
Nearly 615,000 deaths related to Covid-19 lung disease were recorded in Brazil.
In the presidential election, Bolsonaro is likely to meet the former head of state Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010), who is clearly ahead according to the latest polls.
Lula da Silva has not yet officially declared his candidacy.
Bolsonaro won the 2018 presidential election as a member of the far-right Social Liberal Party (PSL), but left it in November 2019 after an internal power struggle.
He then tried to found his own party called the “Alliance for Brazil”, but did not manage to collect the necessary number of signatures or to meet other requirements.
Numerous motions for impeachment have been filed against Bolsonaro.
Five preliminary investigations have started with the judicial authorities.
However, it does not look as if this could be dangerous for him until the end of his current term of office.