Jair Bolsonaro has said he will support his wife Michelle as a candidate. (file)
Brasilia:
The political career of Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro took a turn for the worse on Friday as Brazil’s Federal Electoral Court (TSE) banned the far-right nationalist from public office until 2030 for his conduct during last year’s difficult election.
Five of the seven judges voted to convict Bolsonaro, 68, of abuse of power and abuse of the media when, in July, ahead of the 2022 election, he published unsubstantiated claims about Brazil’s electronic voting system. called ambassadors for
His decision marks a surprising reversal for Mr Bolsonaro, a flamboyant former army captain who narrowly lost to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in October’s election. Many in Brazil accuse him of launching a nationwide movement to overturn the result, which culminated in an attack on government buildings in Brasília by thousands of his supporters on 8 January.
Jair Bolsonaro has denied wrongdoing, and his lawyers have promised to appeal to the Supreme Court. On Friday, he described the decision as a “stab in the back” and vowed to keep working to advance right-wing politics in Brazil.
It remains to be seen what Mr Bolsonaro, whose personal brand has become increasingly toxic in Brazil, does next.
His hopes of defeating Lula in the 2026 presidential election may be over, but that doesn’t mean Bolsonaro will be gone in three years’ time. Jair Bolsonaro has said he will support his wife Michelle as a candidate.
An avowed admirer of former US President Donald Trump, Bolsonaro has been criticized internationally for his weak management of the Amazon rainforest, his laissez-faire approach to COVID-19 restrictions and his evidence-free attacks on Brazil’s electoral system Was.
The TSE test is part of a wider assessment in Brazil of the fallout of the country’s most painful election in a generation. While the former president faces an electoral court probe, several of his aides are being questioned by lawmakers in a Congressional probe into the January 8 riots.
The TSE decision is also not the end of Bolsonaro’s troubles. He is separately facing multiple criminal investigations that could still land him behind bars.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV Staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)