International
BRAZIL: Court bars jailed Lula from presidential race
Jailed former President of Brazil Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been barred from contesting the forthcoming presidential elections schedule for October.
The fate of embattled Lula was so decided by a top electoral court because of his corruption conviction.
During the session, Supreme Court Justice Luis Roberto Barroso cast the first vote against Lula, saying the ruling was “very simple” because the law forbids candidates whose conviction has been upheld on appeal.
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The justices eventually voted 6-1 against the once hugely popular leader, who has been incarcerated since April for accepting a bribe.
“There is no margin here for the electoral court to make any other evaluation but the one showing there is a conviction, and that conviction matters in the candidate’s eligibility,” Barroso said.
72-year-old Lula was found guilty of graft in July 2017 and is serving a 12-year sentence for accepting a luxury seaside apartment as a bribe from a construction firm while he was in power.
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