Bolsonaro is accused of orchestrating a coup to retain power following his loss to incumbent Lula da Silva in the 2022 presidential elections.
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The majority of a panel of Brazilian Supreme Court justices voted to convict former president Jair Bolsonaro on Thursday of attempting a coup to remain in office despite his electoral defeat in the 2022 presidential election.
The ruling is set to deepen political divisions and will likely prompt a backlash from the United States government. US President Donald Trump has previously called Bolsonaro’s legal proceedings as “a witch hunt”.
The far-right politician who governed Brazil between 2019 and 2022 was found guilty on five counts by three members of a five-justice panel.
The latest to rule was Cármen Lúcia on Thursday, a day after another justice, Luiz Fux, disagreed and voted to acquit the ex-president of all charges. There is only one pending justice to vote.
Once all five justices have voted, the panel will decide on Bolsonaro’s sentence, which could amount to decades in prison. The 70-year-old former president is currently under house arrest as per an order from Justice Alexandre de Moraes on 5 August for violating a ban on political messaging.
Bolsonaro’s lawyers said on Thursday that they will appeal the verdict to the full Supreme Court of 11 justices. The former president, who has denied any wrongdoing, has not attended the court hearing in person, instead electing to send his lawyers in his place.
The trial has been followed by a divided society, with people backing the process against Bolsonaro, while others still support him. Some have taken to the streets to back the far-right leader and call for his immediate acquittal.
Bolsonaro’s trial got renewed attention after Trump linked a 50% tariff on imported Brazilian goods to his ally’s legal situation. Observers say Washington might announce new sanctions against Brazil after the trial, further straining their already fragile diplomatic relations.
Justice de Moraes, who is overseeing the case, said on Tuesday that Bolsonaro was the leader of a coup plot and of a criminal organisation, and voted in favour of convicting him.
Despite his legal woes, Bolsonaro remains a powerful political player in Brazil.
The far-right politician had been previously banned from running for office until 2030 in a separate case. He is expected to choose an heir who is likely to challenge incumbent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva next year.
The ruling may push Bolsonaro’s allied lawmakers, and his three lawmaker sons, to seek some amnesty for him through Congress.