Minister maintained the TSE’s decision against the deputy and stated that democracy must preserve the normality of elections
Minister Edson Fachin, of the STF (Supreme Federal Court), denied an appeal presented by deputy Nikolas Ferreira (PL-MG) against the decision of the TSE (Superior Electoral Court) in a process involving President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT). Here is the full decision (PDF – 168 kB).
The Electoral Court sentenced the congressman to pay a fine of R$30,000 for disseminating false information against the current president. During the 2022 electoral campaign, the then councilor of Belo Horizonte released a video on his social media profile saying that Lula embezzled R$242.2 billion from public health.
The deputy appealed the decision last year. In March 2023, the TSE decided, by 6 votes to 1, to deny the appeal filed against the decision.
Nikolas then appealed to the STF to try to reverse the decision. In the decision, handed down on March 26, Fachin states that the violation of the Electoral Law by the congressman is evident.
“There is no rule of law or free society in a representative democracy that does not preserve, even with bitter and borderline remedies, the very normality of elections”he declared.
