Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro filed an appeal this Wednesday with Superior Electoral Court (TSE) judge Benedito Gonçalves, draftsman of the trial and the first to vote in Thursday’s trial that would have left the former head of state ineligible , to change your vote.
“I am sure that even Benedito, minister of the STJ [Superior Tribunal de Justiça], now a member of the TSE rapporteur, will change his vote. Senhor Benedito is a matter of cohesion.” Jair Bolsonaro told journalists, quoted in the local press, as he left the Senate where he met some senators, including his son, Flávio Bolsonaro.
Regarding the possibility of being ineligible, Bolsonaro stated that he “wouldn’t want to lose” his political rights.
“I don’t know if I’m going to run for mayor next year, councilor or if I’m going to run for senator or president in the future, I don’t know. Now to run I have to keep my political rights and that’s not a reason he defended.
The former Brazilian president has his political future on the line as he faces first trial by the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) on Thursday, rendering him ineligible for the next eight years.
The lawsuit alleges that Jair Bolsonaro committed an abuse of political power and abuse of the media during a meeting organized by the then Brazilian head of state in the middle of the election campaign with foreign ambassadors at the Alvorada Palace, the president’s official home. in Brazil, on July 18, 2022.
During this meeting, Jair Bolsonaro launched several baseless attacks on the reliability of the electoral process and, more specifically, the electronic ballot boxes, used and validated by various international bodies since 1996, and the same ones that elected him to various terms as federal deputy and president.
According to several experts consulted by the most prominent media outlets, most judges will vote for ineligibility, expecting Nunes Marques, appointed to the Federal Supreme Court by Jair Bolsonaro, to ask for more time to analyze the trial, which would increase the delay conclusion. of the process.
In addition, Bolsonaro has more than a dozen cases pending at the TSE, including verbal attacks on the electoral system and using the public machine for his own benefit, which could see him lose his political rights.
Bolsonaro, who lost his immunity after being defeated in October’s election, has at least five pending federal Supreme Court investigations that could lead him to prison.
The trial will begin at 9 a.m. (1 p.m. in Lisbon) and seven judges will decide whether to retain political rights, ineligibility or postpone the decision.
Source: DN
