Brazilian court resumes trial against Bolsonaro

The Superior Electoral Court of Brazil will resume the trial against former president Jair Bolsonaro.

Bolsonaro faces an investigation for the alleged abuse of political and economic power during the last elections and illegal conduct during the commemorations of the Bicentennial of Independence on September 7th, 2022.

The ministers participating in the case are discussing whether the former president made use of the official structure of the party of the Bicentennial of Independence to hold a campaign event to re-elect himself.

On September 7th of last year, Bolsonaro attended the official parade at the Esplanade of the Ministries in Brasilia and then boarded a sound truck a few meters away to make an electoral speech.

Later, Bolsonaro traveled to Rio de Janeiro and attended a presentation by the Army and Air Force on Copacabana beach, where he made a new speech campaigning for himself.

Minister Benedito Gonçalves considered in his report that the electoral proselytizing crusade was mixed with the use of the public machine, and pointed out that the event resulted in “taking over a civic date”, which would have led to countless damage.

In June, Bolsonaro was sentenced by the TSE to ineligibility for eight years (until 2030) for holding a meeting with foreign ambassadors in July 2022 at the official residence of the Presidency, in which he questioned, without evidence, the electronic ballot boxes used in the elections.