Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been barred from running for the top seat until 2030.
Bolsonaro was facing allegations of abusing political power and media manipulation, and has now been prohibited from office for the next three elections.
Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court (TSE) secured a majority to politically incapacitate the 68-year-old right-winger.
With four out of seven votes, court judges acknowledged that Bolsonaro had abused his political power and exploited the media to undermine confidence in Brazil's electronic voting system.
The trial, presided over by TSE President Alexandre de Moraes, commenced on June 22.
The charges arise from a televised address that took place at the Alvorada Palace, attended by a dozen foreign diplomats.
During the address, Bolsonaro made unfounded allegations regarding Brazil's electronic voting system in the lead-up to his democratic competition with current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in October 2022.
Democracy on trial
The lawsuit, initiated by The Democratic Labour Party (PDT), accuses Bolsonaro of attempting to undermine democracy in Brazil and seeking to undermine Lula's victory in the presidential election held last October.
During the trial, the TSE presented a draft decree that was discovered in the residence of Anderson Torres, former minister of justice, during a raid conducted by the federal police in January.
The document, labelled as an attempt to subvert the October 2022 election result, was included as evidence in the proceedings.
According to the federal police, the document aimed to seize control of the TSE offices after Lula's victory and overturn the outcome of the election.
Lula got 60.3 million votes (50.9%) against Bolsonaro’s 58.2 million (49.1%) to secure victory in the presidential run-off held on October 30.
