A majority of judges on Brazil’s top election court have voted to ban former President Jair Bolsonaro from seeking office again until 2030. The decision was made due to Bolsonaro’s claims, deemed false by the court, about the country’s voting systems, which were seen as undermining democracy. Bolsonaro, a right-wing populist and ally of former U.S. President Donald Trump, is also facing multiple criminal investigations.
If the ruling is upheld by Brazil’s Supreme Court, Bolsonaro would be barred from running for president until he turns 75 and would be sidelined from politics for the rest of the decade. Bolsonaro expressed his discontent with the decision, stating that he had always operated within the bounds of the Constitution.
The trial, which lasted a week, did not include witness testimonies. It mainly involved statements from the justices and brief comments from Bolsonaro’s defense team. Bolsonaro’s supporters had hoped he would run for political office again, but the ban puts those plans on hold according to the Wall Street Journal.
Bolsonaro, who took office in 2018, promised government reforms and anti-corruption measures but faced controversy throughout his term. He intensified cultural tensions in the country and oversaw a significant COVID-19 outbreak. After losing the election in 2022, Bolsonaro did not attend his successor’s inauguration and refused to participate in the symbolic passing of the presidential sash. His legal team has announced plans to appeal the decision in the electoral court and subsequently in the Supreme Court.
