Brazil’s Supreme Court inched closer to convicting former President Jair Bolsonaro on Tuesday, as two justices voted to find him guilty of leading a criminal conspiracy to overturn the 2022 election.
The decision marks the first votes in the final phase of Bolsonaro’s high-stakes trial, leaving the five-judge panel just one vote away from a majority verdict.
The charges, stemming from a sweeping federal police investigation, accuse Bolsonaro of participating in an armed criminal organization, attempting to violently abolish democracy, orchestrating a coup, and damaging government property and cultural heritage sites.
The case is tied to his alleged role in inciting riots in January 2023, when thousands of supporters stormed and ransacked the Congress, presidential palace, and Supreme Court in Brasilia following his electoral defeat to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the 2022 elections and was allegedly targeted in Bolsonaro’s coup plot, cast the first vote to convict, calling the ex-president the “leader of the criminal organization.” Justice Flavio Dino, Lula’s former justice minister, also voted for conviction.
Bolsonaro’s lawyers have denied all allegations, while his allies have denounced the proceedings as politically motivated. Moraes in particular has drawn hostility from Bolsonaro’s supporters, with former U.S. President Donald Trump even labeling the case a “witch hunt” and imposing sanctions and tariffs on Brazil during his administration in solidarity with Bolsonaro.
The panel will continue its deliberations this week, with Justices Luiz Fux, Carmen Lucia, and Cristiano Zanin set to deliver their votes. If convicted, Bolsonaro faces a maximum sentence of 40 years. Though already barred from seeking office until 2030, his supporters believe a future president could pardon him.
Meanwhile, Bolsonaro’s allies are pushing for amnesty. Sao Paulo Governor Tarcisio de Freitas, a former cabinet minister under Bolsonaro, has urged Congress to pass legislation granting clemency, a move widely seen as bolstering his own presidential ambitions ahead of next year’s election.
Source: Reuters
Written By Rodney Mbua
