The Brazilian Electoral Justice To Prosecute Jair Bolsonaro

On Thursday, the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) will begin a trial for abuses of power against former President Jair Bolsonaro, who could lose all his political rights if found guilty.

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Driven by the Democratic Labor Party (PDT), this legal process focuses on Bolsonaro's harsh campaign to discredit the electoral justice and other institutions during the two years leading up to the 2022 elections.

Since the TSE has scheduled three hearings for this case, the sentence declaring Bolsonaro "ineligible" for eight years could be issued next week if he is found guilty.

In their documents, the prosecuting lawyers highlighted that the former President called upon dozens of foreign ambassadors to a meeting on July 18, 2022, in which he publicly insisted on discrediting the electoral system.

This meeting, broadcasted on public television by express order of the Presidency, was designed to convince diplomats that the electoral authorities would allow fraud through electronic voting machines, which Brazil has been using since 1996 without a single irregularity recorded.

The tweet reads, "The Biden administration acted to prevent Bolsonaro's coup, says Britain's Financial Times."

Bolsonaro's defamatory speech aimed to sow the idea that TSE members were "conspiring" in favor of the Workers' Party presidential candidate Lula da Silva, who had been released from prison and undeniably led all voting intention polls.

The accusers argue that Bolsonaro engaged in "abuses of power" and "misuse of public media" by using the Presidency's official residence to convene such a meeting and ordering its broadcast on public television.

To garner international support in the event of a coup in his favor, the far-right politician actively promoted the idea that the Brazilian electoral process was unreliable and would yield fraudulent results.

In December 2022, a few days before the presidential handover, Bolsonaro left the country without publicly acknowledging Lula da Silva's victory in the elections.

From Miami, he encouraged his supporters to "resist." A few days later, on January 8, 2023, thousands of far-right activists attacked the headquarters of the three branches in Brasilia.

Currently, Bolsonaro is also facing at least a dozen criminal trials against him. In one of them, he appears as the main suspect for inciting the Brasilia assault, which took place after Lula da Silva had already become the country's president.