A majority of a five-member panel of Brazilian Supreme Court justices found the country’s former president, Jair Bolsonaro, guilty of attempting a coup after his loss in the 2022 presidential election.
Bolsonaro, 70, was found guilty on all five counts he was charged with — attempting to stage a coup, involvement in an armed criminal organization, attempted violent abolition of the democratic rule of law and two counts relating to destruction of state property. The case marked the first time a former Brazilian head of state was prosecuted for attempting a coup.
Justices Alexandre de Moraes, Flávio Dino and Cármen Lúcia Antunes Rocha voted to convict Bolsonaro, while Justice Luis Fux voted to acquit the former Brazilian president. Justice Cristiano Zanin is yet to vote on the case.
Prosecutors claimed Bolsonaro oversaw a plot to overturn the results of the October 2022 election, which saw the far-right populist lose to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known as Lula. Bolsonaro, along with seven alleged co-conspirators each facing separate trials, was also accused of planning an assassination attempt on Lula, Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, and Moraes.
“Call it whatever you want: This was a draft decree for a coup d’état,” de Moraes said on Tuesday, according to the AP. “A series of executive acts were carried out aimed at breaking the democratic rule of law and perpetuating power through a coup d’état.”
Bolsonaro’s lawyers have said they will appeal a guilty verdict to the entire 11-justice Brazilian Supreme Court.
In January 2023, days after Lula took office, thousands of Bolsonaro’s supporters attacked federal government buildings in the nation’s capital, Brasilia. In June of that year, Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court barred Bolsonaro from running for public office until 2030 via a 5-2 decision. The majority of justices found that Bolsonaro promoted his campaign and spread allegations of voter fraud via official government communication channels.
A member of the Social Liberal Party who was president from January 2019 to January 2023, Bolsonaro was placed under house arrest by the Supreme Court in early August. De Moraes accused Bolsonaro of utilizing his three sons’ social media accounts to attack the judicial body.
Bolsonaro did not attend the trial, with his lawyer, Celso Vilardi, citing the former president’s poor health, according to the AP.
In July, President Trump called Bolsonaro’s trial a “witch hunt” and increased tariff rates on Brazilian imports from 40 to 50 percent. The levies went into effect on Aug. 1; certain products, such as orange juice, breathing appliances and aircraft parts, are exempt.
The Treasury Department also sanctioned de Moraes in July for using his position “to authorize arbitrary pre-trial detentions and suppress freedom of expression.”
Bolsonaro will be sentenced on Friday. He is facing up to 40 years in prison.
The Hill has reached out to the White House and State Department for comment.
