Supporters of Bolsonaro have been scathing in their criticism of the proceedings, arguing that they are designed to prevent him from running for the presidency in the 2026 election.
While Bolsonaro is already barred from running for public office until 2030 for falsely claiming that Brazil’s voting system was vulnerable to fraud, he had declared his intention to fight that ban so he could stand for a second term in 2026.
One of his vocal supporters has been US President Donald Trump, who imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports citing the court’s treatment of Bolsonaro as a trigger for the hike.
He also sanctioned Alexandre de Moraes, the Supreme Court justice overseeing the Bolsonaro trial.
Reacting to Bolsonaro’s conviction, Trump said he found it “very surprising”.
“It’s very much what they tried to do with me, but they didn’t get away with it at all. He was a good man, I don’t see that happening,” Trump told reporters, drawing parallels between Bolsonaro and himself.
Jair Bolsonaro’s son Eduardo, who lobbied for the imposition of sanctions on Brazilian imports, told Reuters news agency that he expected the US would take further measures in the wake of the verdict.
“We are going to have a firm response with actions from the US government against this dictatorship that is being installed in Brazil,” he said.