Brazil President, Dilma Rousseff suspended

Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff has been suspended after the Senate’s vote was out of her favour to have her face corruption trial.

Rousseff’s suspension comes by 55 votes to 22 in an all-night session that lasted more than 20 hours despite being favored by the votes in the lower house.

She is accused of illegally manipulating finances to hide a growing public deficit ahead of her re-election in 2014, which she denies.

Vice-President Michel Temer is expected to assume the presidency while Ms Rousseff’s trial takes place.

The trial may last up to 180 days, which would mean Ms Rousseff would be suspended during the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, which start on 5 August.

Ms Rousseff made a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court to stop proceedings, but the move was rejected. Her suspension brings an end to 13 years of the rule of her Workers’ Party.

The 68 year old, who was first sworn into office in January 2011 and started a second term in 2015, has called the steps to remove her “coup”.

 

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