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The moral compass and basic humanity of political leaders really does matter.

It has been common in many countries, including Brazil and the United States, for voters to choose a president on the basis of their perceived character. In some elections, it has been the determining factor; if not, it has still been an important one.

But Jair Bolsonaro was elected president of Brazil in 2018 despite having said in public, “I’m in favor of torture—you know that. And the people are in favor of it too.” It wasn’t a slip of the tongue or a hideous joke. In 2016, as a congressman voting to impeach then-President Dilma Rousseff, he dedicated his vote for impeachment to the military officer who was responsible for her torture in prison, under Brazil’s military dictatorship. Bolsonaro has also praised Brazil’s (1964–85) dictatorship itself, saying that its mistake was that it didn’t kill enough people.

Now comes Jair’s son, Flávio Bolsonaro, headed for the second and final round of Brazil’s presidential election on Sunday, October 25. He defended his father’s salute to Dilma’s torturer and has also repeatedly praised the dictatorship.

The relevance of these common traits, as well as moral values—or lack thereof—is not guilt by association. The Bolsonaros are a team: It was Jair’s political capital from his presidency that brought Flávio to where he is today. Flávio has publicly owned this political convergence, branding himself as “Bolsonaro 2.0.”

Flávio is running against incumbent President Lula da Silva. Lula got his political start as a union leader working in a factory and was president of Brazil from 2003 through 2010. Of........

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