Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro speaks to media after arriving at the airport in Brasilia.Credit:AP
Their decision marks a stunning reversal for Bolsonaro,a fiery populist who narrowly lost the October vote to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Many in Brazil blame Bolsonaro for creating a nationwide movement to overturn the result,which culminated in theJanuary 8 invasion of government buildings in Brasilia by thousands of his supporters.
The impact from the electoral court’s ruling is likely to ripple through Brazilian politics,removing Lula’s main foe from contention in 2026 and opening up space among a competitive field on Brazil’s right.
The majority opinion in the trial was written by Justice Benedito Goncalves,who said Bolsonaro used the meeting with ambassadors to “spread doubts and incite conspiracy theories”. Two conservative-leaning judges dissented.
Bolsonaro’s wife,Michelle Bolsonaro,outside the Brazilian Liberal Party headquarters on Thursday.Credit:Getty
Justice Alexandre de Moraes,a longtime Bolsonaro adversary who currently heads the electoral federal court (TSE),joined the majority,saying Bolsonaro had spread a “chain of lies and fraudulent news” in his “radical” speech to ambassadors.
Lula’s team celebrated the result.