Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was handed down an eight-year ban from running for office under the spectre of campaign falsehoods and improper use of presidential power in a case that draws parallels with the aftermath of Donald Trump's baseless election claims. Brazil's Supreme Electoral Court agreed Friday that Bolsonaro abused his authority in improperly sowing doubts about the country's electoral system.
The 68-year-old former president will be ineligible to run for office again until 2030, in effect blocking any attempt of the far-right politician at regaining power before then. At that time, however, he will still be younger than the 77-year-old Lula currently in office.
It was the culmination of a process that began in July 2022 and was referred to the electoral court during the election. The findings of the court were announced early afternoon in Brasilia.
The case began on July 18, 2022 when Bolsonaro spoke to ambassadors, launching a scathing attack on Brazil's electronic voting system, making insinuations of a conspiracy of electoral fraud and allegations of systemic malfunction. He was basically making a case for the introduction of paper receipts to guarantee the security of vote recounts. He was also laying the groundwork for not accepting the election results.
Controversy arose immediately because of the similarity to Trump's claims that had already led to the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by those who believed the former US president without any substantiating evidence. Like Trump, Bolsonaro offered no evidence. Like Trump, he had a large number of people who believed the claims.
Brazil's electoral authority, however, repeatedly discredited Bolsonaro's assertions, validating the integrity of the voting system. Among the opposition and some supporters, it was widely understood the action as a precursor to rejection of an electoral loss.
Notably, when the elections did occur, and Bolsonaro lost—though he received 58 million votes—he never acknowledged Lula's victory and his actions have been seen as the motivation for the January 8 insurrection that mirrored the US action two years earlier, and destroyed Brazil's centres of constitutional power.
Important for context is that Brazil has embraced electronic voting since 1996, and throughout its history in the use of the system, authorities have unearthed no substantiated evidence of widespread electoral malfeasance. Thus, the remarks were deemed conspiratorial lies abusing the power of the office and generating charges of using the public platform and resources to spread them.
The ruling of ineligibility is a significant turning point for Brazilian politics, noting that in Brazil, the electoral justice court takes issue with the use of public funds to propagate a lie. It goes back to the July 2021 event Bolsonaro held in Brasilia’s Alvorada Palace, where he began sowing the seeds for a Trump-style claim that the election results would be rigged.
Like Trump, Bolsonaro had no basis for such claims. Trouble for him was that Brazilian law takes such lies in an electoral context seriously. By contrast Trump is sheltered by the First Amendment to the US Constitution that literally guarantees the right to lie under the banner of Freedom of Speech.
Bolsonaro's rise to power echoed the populist fervour that swept across several nations, most notable the rise of Trump in the United States, who is often caught in mistruths that resonate with disenchanted segments of society longing for change. The sometimes charismatic, sometimes awkward Bolsonaro captivated supporters with an unapologetically brash rhetoric and promises of challenging the establishment, openly emulating the playbook employed successfully by Trump. Both men tapped into a deep-seated disillusionment, capitalising on widespread dissatisfaction and a desire for unorthodox leadership.
However, when disentangling the nuances and contextual idiosyncrasies that distinguish Brazil, it is important to note the strength and speed of the work of the country's institutions. In the aftermath of similar failed strategies, Bolsonaro faces a distinct set of challenges within the legal framework of Brazil that are markedly different from the culture and speed of justice of the United States.
A crucial point of convergence lies in the brazen abuse of power exhibited by both Bolsonaro and Trump during their respective tenures but in Brazil there are different consequences for conduct of that form. President of the Supreme Electoral Court, Judge Alexandre de Moraes characterised the actions as an attack on the public’s ability to cast a free vote, "and the public cannot be bombarded with false information," he said.
Bolsonaro's transgressions manifested in a flagrant disregard for democratic institutions and principles, say those celebrating the decision.
Marcelo da Silva Santos, a sympathiser of Lula’s Workers Party who admits having voted for Bolsonaro in 2018, says that Bolsonaro’s repeated attempts to curtail press freedom, attempts to undermine the independence of the judiciary, an inclination towards autocratic tendencies and a penchant for wielding executive authority in unprecedented ways, have proven he is a threat to democracy.
“This misuse of authority threatens the very fabric of democracy, eroding public trust and undermining the legitimacy of the political process,” said Santos.
Allegations of power abuse and the improper utilisation of presidential powers have reignited intense debates on the foundations of democracy and the repercussions of disinformation campaigns. Brazil's democratic institutions, though tested under Bolsonaro's presidency, have exhibited a degree of resilience and pushback, with the judiciary and civil society often acting as bulwarks of protection of democracy.
In the US, the complex interplay of factors combined with Trump's own unique brand of divisive politics, has resulted in a more protracted and contentious battle to safeguard democratic norms.
Bolsonaro's political trajectory, with his unorthodox methods in full display, has been met with both applause and disdain. Yet, the Supreme Electoral Court is taking issue with these missteps and his disregard for the checks and balances of democracy.
For the former president, the decision is a political precipice, one that was certainly anticipated by his Partido Liberal political party which inherits his ideology and base.
Throughout each judge’s soliloquy in announcing their vote, Bolsonaro was castigated for statements that were deemed lies. Cour President de Moraes read a series of Bolsonaro’s statements followed by the word “Mentira!” Lie!
"I believe it is the first sentence for abuse of political power," said Bolsonaro speaking after the court's vote. He claimed to be the victim of a political persecution and compared himself to Bolivia's Jeanine Anez, imprisoned for 10 years by the regime of Evo Morales' party that followed her in the presidency.
The consequences of the impact of abuse of power have raised profound questions about the resilience of democratic systems as much in the US as in Brazil; the latter, however, has for better or for worse began a journey toward restoring public trust on the legitimacy of its political process.
It is a moment that will live in the history of democracy in Brazil.
