Jair Bolsonaro faces no shortage of charges.
They range from deliberately boycotting Brazil’s response to a pandemic, to gutting the country’s environmental agencies, to inciting violent riots against the democratic order … to trying to smuggle in jewelry gifted by Gulf states.
But his comeuppance may have come from a type of transgression that’s rarely punished in Brazil: electoral crimes.
Jair Bolsonaro was found guilty of abusing his office to sow distrust in the electoral system and pit his tens of millions of supporters against democratic institutions — laying the groundwork to challenge the 2022 election results.
This week, we’ll explore what went against Mr. Bolsonaro in court, what the conviction means for him — and what it means for the country’s political system as a whole.
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This episode used music from Uppbeat. License codes: Aspire by Pryces (B6TUQLVYOWVKY02S). Tunnel by Danijel Zambo (YXSCA8NJS2ZMD6E8).
In this episode:
- Cedê Silva is The Brazilian Report’s Brasília correspondent.
Background reading:
- Five of Brazil’s seven electoral justices voted to convict the country’s former far-right president for abusing his office to discredit the electoral system. He will be banned from running for public office until 2030.
- But, as Amanda Audi writes, ineligibility could be just the beginning for Jair Bolsonaro. It’s open season on the former far-right president, who faces more than 600 lawsuits — ranging from anodyne complaints to criminal investigations.
- Listen to Episode #238: Bolsonaro trial nears verdict. As the electoral trial of Jair Bolsonaro neared, Cedê Silva explained in detail the case against him.
- In a July 2022 event, President Jair Bolsonaro tried to use foreign diplomats as a way to legitimize his red herrings about the electoral process. It is that meeting that led to Mr. Bolsonaro’s ineligibility for office.
Do you have a suggestion for our next Explaining Brazil podcast? Drop us a line at [email protected]
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