Impeachment is an English word that means "off-side" or "impeachment", used as a model of prosecution brought against senior government officials accused of infringing their functional duties. Saying that the President of the Republic was impeached means that he will not be able to continue exercising its political functions..
Abuse of power, normal crimes and crimes of responsibility, as well as any other attack or violation of the Constitution are examples of what can be the basis for an impeachment.
Impeachment takes place in the Executive Branch, which can happen in Brazil, for example, to the President of the Republic, Governors and Mayors. When impeachment occurs, it means that the mandate is challenged or revoked.
Impeachment in the Brazilian Constitution
Impeachment of the President of the Republic
The Constitution does not talk about impeachment, but in the case of the President of the Republic, for example, liability crimes are described in article 85 of the Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil. Liability crimes are those that violate the Federal Constitution.
Art. 85. The acts of the President of the Republic that violate the Federal Constitution and, especially, against:
I - the existence of the Union;
II - the free exercise of the Legislative Power, the Judiciary Power, the Public Ministry and the Constitutional Powers of the units of the Federation;
III - the exercise of political, individual and social rights;
IV - the country's internal security;
V - probity in administration;
VI - the budget law;
VII - compliance with laws and court decisions.
Learn more about meaning of Liability Crimes.
Who assumes power in the case of impeachment of the President of the Republic
There is a clear line of succession in the case of impeachment. The first in the line of succession is the vice president of the republic.
If for some reason he can't either, the president of the Chamber of Deputies takes over. In case the latter is also impeded, who assumes power is the president of the Senate.
How Impeachment Works
The impeachment procedure is described in law 1079/50.
Impeachment is a long process and for it to occur, several steps must be taken, including the indictment, the indictment and the trial.
Article 86 of the Constitution refers to the measures taken if the President of the Republic is in fact challenged, the first of which is the suspension of his functions.
The Legislative Power manages this entire process. To be approved in the Chamber of Deputies, the request for impeachment must have at least 2/3 (two thirds) of the votes of the parliamentarians. If approved in the Chamber, the request goes to the Federal Senate, for a vote by the senators.
After approval by the Senate for the initiation of the impeachment process, the person who is the target of the process is removed from office for up to 180 days, and until the end of this period, the final judgment must take place, where 2/3 (two thirds) of the votes of the senators are needed to definitively remove the person judged from his position political.
Impeachments in Brazil
Impeachment by Fernando Collor
In Brazil, the impeachment process against a President of the Republic was filed for the first time in 1992 against President Fernando Collor de Mello.
This process was approved in the Chamber of Deputies on September 29, 1992, being taken to the Senate. However, it cannot be said that there was impeachment in this case, because before the Senate's decision, President Collor resigned on December 29th. The vice president Itamar Franco took over.
Despite having resigned from office, Congress voted and found Fernando Collor ineligible for political office for 8 years.
Dilma Rousseff's Impeachment
In 2016, during the second term of President Dilma Rousseff, a request for impeachment against the head of the Executive Power, accused of tax pedaling by opposition parties to the government.
The process was approved in plenary at the Chamber of Deputies with 367 votes in favor and 137 against, on April 17, 2016.
On May 12, 2016, the impeachment process against Dilma Rousseff was voted on by the Federal Senate, having been approved with 55 votes in favor and 22 votes against. Thus, Dilma Rousseff was removed from the presidency until the final judgment of the Senate, which took place in August 2016, between the 25th and 31st.
On August 31, the former president was convicted and had her term revoked. That same day Michel Temer (who was vice-president of Dilma Rousseff) was sworn in, assuming the presidency of the Republic.
See too:
- tax pedaling
- 5 most important moments in the struggle for democracy in Brazil and in the world.
