Brazil Congress Overturns Lula Veto, Reduces Bolsonaro’s 27-Year Coup Plotting Sentence
Brazil’s Congress has overturned a presidential veto, approving a contentious bill that could substantially reduce former President Jair Bolsonaro’s 27-year sentence for plotting a coup. Bolsonaro, 71, was convicted last year for his attempts to retain power following his 2022 election loss to Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
President Lula had sought to block the conservative-dominated Congress’s efforts to shorten Bolsonaro's term to just over two years. However, in a tense parliamentary session on Thursday, lawmakers successfully overrode Lula's veto of the legislation, which revises the methodology for calculating prison sentences. The Supreme Court could still challenge this new law.
Bolsonaro, who was temporarily placed under house arrest in March due due to ill health, was found guilty in September of being aware of plans to assassinate Lula and his vice-presidential running mate, Geraldo Alckmin. The conspiracy failed without military backing, leading to Lula's inauguration on 1 January 2023.
Following the veto override, several lawmakers chanted slogans, including the name of Flavio Bolsonaro, the former leader’s eldest son and a senator, who posted his gratitude on X, calling the decision a “very special birthday present” on his 45th birthday.
Over two-thirds of Congress supported the legislation designed to reduce sentences for individuals convicted of coup-related actions. This marks the second significant legislative defeat for Lula’s left-wing government this week, particularly challenging for the president as he campaigns for a fourth term. Earlier, the Senate rejected his nominee for a Supreme Court justice, Jorge Messias, marking the first such rejection in decades and indicating shifting political momentum.
