The majority of a panel of Brazilian Supreme Court justices on Thursday voted to convict former president Jair Bolsonaro of attempting a coup to remain in office despite his 2022 electoral defeat.
The far-right politician who governed Brazil between 2019 and 2022 was found guilty on five counts by three members of a five-justice panel. The latest to rule was Cármen Lúcia on Thursday, a day after another justice, Luiz Fux, disagreed and voted to acquit the ex-president of all charges.
Justices of the Brazilian Supreme Court meet for the verdict and sentencing phase of a trial for those charged in an alleged coup plot to keep Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro in office after his 2022 election defeat, in Brasilia, Brazil. (Photo: AP)There is only one pending justice to vote. Once all five justices have voted, the panel will decide on Bolsonaro’s sentence, which could amount to decades in prison.
The 70-year-old former president is currently under house arrest. His lawyers have said that they will appeal the verdict to the full Supreme Court of 11 justices. Bolsonaro, who has denied any wrongdoing, has not attended the court and has sent his lawyers.
The trial has been followed by a divided society, with people backing the process against the former president, while others still support him. Some have taken to the streets to back the far-right leader.
