Legal woes hang over the former president, who has called for several demonstrations in support of himself in recent months.
Facing serious legal jeopardy with potentially years of incarceration over an alleged coup plot being tried by the nation’s Supreme Court, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has attended a protest by his supporters.
Several thousand people attended the rally on Sunday in Sao Paolo. During the protest, Bolsonaro told the crowds that those who “accuse” him may have “trump cards up their sleeves”.
“But I have three things on my side that they don’t have: God, freedom and the support of a large part of the Brazilian population,” he said.
“I’m not obsessed with power, I’m in love with my country,” he said, adding, “I don’t need to be the president…If I remain honorary president of my party, we can do what you want.”
In February, Bolsonaro, 70, who led the country from 2019 to 2022, was charged with five counts of planning to remain in power and overturn the 2022 election result, which current president, the left-wing Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, won. Thirty-three of Bolsonaro’s closest allies were also charged.
Earlier this month, Bolsonaro testified for the first time before the nation’s Supreme Court, denying any involvement in the alleged coup plot.
The Supreme Court headquarters in Brasilia was one of the targets of a rioting mob known as “Bolsonaristas” – who raided government buildings in January 2023 as they urged the military to oust President Lula, an insurrection attempt that evoked the supporters of Bolsonaro ally United States President Donald Trump on January 6, 2021.
Police have referred to the demonstration as an uprising and an attempt to force military intervention and depose Lula.
Bolsonaro claims that the various cases against him are politically motivated, aimed at preventing him from making a comeback in the 2026 elections.
Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court ruled last year that due to an abuse of Bolsonaro’s political power and his baseless claims about the country’s electronic voting system, he would be banned from holding office until 2030.
‘An abominable thing’
Earlier this month, at Bolsonaro’s first testimony at the Supreme Court, the former president denied that there was a coup attempt.
“There was never any talk of a coup. A coup is an abominable thing,” Bolsonaro said.
“Brazil couldn’t go through an experience like that. And there was never even the possibility of a coup in my government.”
Bolsonaro was abroad in Florida in the US at the time of this last-gasp effort to keep him in power after the alleged coup planning fizzled. But his opponents have accused him of fomenting the rioting.
At the same time, Brazilian police have called for Bolsonaro to be separately charged with illegal espionage while president.
According to legal experts, the sentencing part of the coup plot case is expected in the second half of the year. If convicted, Bolsonaro could face up to 12 years in prison.
During his legal troubles, the former president has called for several protests, but his appearances at them have declined in recent months, as have the crowds.
According to estimates by the University of Sao Paulo, about 45,000 people took part in the most recent march on Paulista Avenue in April, almost four times fewer than in February.
Sao Paulo Governor Tarcisio de Freitas, a former Bolsonaro minister, is a top candidate to represent the conservatives in the 2026 presidential election.
