Name: Brazil Congress passes bill to cut Bolsonaro prison term
Uploaded: 2025-12-18T18:25:56.820Z
Duration: 1 min 15 s
Description: Brazil’s Senate passed a bill that could drastically reduce former President Jair Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup, potentially cutting his time behind bars to just over two years.

Brazil’s Senate passed a bill that could drastically reduce former President Jair Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup, potentially cutting his time behind bars to just over two years.

Rio de Janeiro

Brazil's parliament has voted in favor of a bill that would reduce former President Jair Bolsonaro's prison sentence from 27 years to two years and four months. The legislation, which does not mention Bolsonaro by name, applies to all individuals convicted of crimes against the rule of law, including supporters involved in the 2022 capital riots.

The bill has sparked protests across the country, with demonstrators demanding full accountability for Bolsonaro. President Lula da Silva holds veto power over the bill, but this could be overridden by the conservative-controlled lower house of parliament. The Supreme Court will also review the law to determine its constitutionality.

Brazil Congress passes bill to cut Bolsonaro prison term

Nothing's ever a done deal when it comes to Jair Bolsonaro. The bill is approved with amendment number six. Brazil's parliament has voted in favour of a law which would reduce the former president's sentence to two years and four months, down from 27 years. The bill doesn't name Bolsonaro specifically. It applies to everyone sentenced for crimes against the rule of law. That includes Bolsonaro's supporters who ran riot in the capital after his 2022 defeat. The former leader's son, Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, has been campaigning for their amnesty. If the text allows people like Lipstick Debra, who simply painted on a statue, to be at home with their family, even if not completely free, it would already make my father feel less sad. The bill provoked protests across Brazil this week, with demonstrators calling for Bolsonaro to pay his crimes in full. Left-wing president Lula da Silva has veto power, but this could be overridden by parliament, where conservatives control the lower house. There's also the question of whether the law respects Brazil's constitution, which will be down to the Supreme Court to decide.

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