Her father, born in Crateús, is a retired bus driver, whose nickname, "Paulo Negão", became nationally known in Jair Bolsonaro speeches to defend himself from accusations of racism.

[4][5] She has a younger stepbrother, Diego de Paula Reinaldo, who was born in 1988 and is a member of the Brazilian Air Force.

In 2008, she was dismissed from the position of Parliamentary Secretary after the Supreme Federal Court understood that the 1988 Constitution prohibited nepotism in public administration.

[citation needed] Bolsonaro's first public appearance in an electoral ad happened on 25 October 2018, three days before the second round of the 2018 Brazilian general election.

In it, she said that she wanted to "make a difference" in favour of the country and that she "will keep doing her job helping disabled people".

Bolsonaro became the first Brazilian first lady to speak at the Palácio do Planalto parliamentary office during a presidential inauguration in sign language.

She is a member of the Ministry of the Deaf of the Baptist Church, where she acted as an interpreter of Brazilian Sign Language in services.

[19] After Jair Bolsonaro was barred from travelling abroad, Michelle instead represented him at the Second inauguration of Donald Trump on 20 January 2025.

[23] Questions have been raised about checks deposited into Michelle's bank account by Fabricio Queiroz who has been arrested for allegedly defrauding the government.