Sao Paulo
Reuters
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said on Sunday that allies have suggested he increases the number of justices in the Supreme Court if he is reelected, according to remarks broadcast on social media.
The Supreme Court has 11 members, and Bolsonaro says the move could help level the playing field at the country’s highest body of justice.
“This suggestion was put before me,” Bolsonaro said during an interview with YouTube podcaster when asked about the proposed changes.
Brazil’s President and candidate for re-election Jair Bolsonaro looks on after the taping of a television advertisement for his presidential campaign in Brasilia, Brazil on 7th October. PICTURE: Reuters/Ueslei Marcelino
The far-right Brazilian president has been at odds with the Supreme Court for most of his tenure in office.
Last year, the Supreme Court approved an investigation into Bolsonaro’s unfounded accusations that Brazil’s electronic voting system is open to fraud, a move which he claimed was “unconstitutional.”
Separately, the Supreme Court authorised a probe into Bolsonaro for posting documents to social media from a sealed police investigation related to the hacking of the country’s federal election court.
The president’s critics have denounced the proposal as a threat to Brazilian institutions, citing a similar move by the Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in 2003.
Bolsonaro said whoever wins Brazil’s presidential election will have a right to appoint two more names to the Supreme Court.
As such, he said his decision on whether to propose more members to the body has not been made, adding the plan would require negotiations with Congress.
Bolsonaro is facing off against leftist former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in an Oct. 30 presidential runoff, with most polls showing the challenger with a narrow lead.
