See who are the STF ministers who will judge Bolsonaro’s complaint today

The First Class of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) will decide, on March 25, to receive the complaint against former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) and seven others involved in an alleged attempted coup d’état.

The accusation is divided into five nuclei, which facilitates the progress of the case in court. In addition to Bolsonaro, the accused include Alexandre Ramagem, Almir Garnier, Anderson Torres, Augusto Heleno, Mauro Cid, Paulo Sérgio Nogueira and Braga Netto.

Read more: understand the next steps of the complaint against Bolsonaro

However, the analysis of the complaint will not be made by the eleven ministers that make up the court. In December 2023, the Supreme Court decided that complaints and criminal actions would be judged again by the classes, not by the plenary. The rapporteur of the investigation on the attempted coup, Minister Alexandre de Moraes, is in the first class, which causes the complaint to reach this collegiate.

Therefore, only five of the eleven STF ministers will vote for the case: Cristiano Zanin, Carmen Lúcia, Luiz Fux, Moraes and Flávio Dino.

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• Cristiano Zanin: Current president of the first class, Zanin was nominated for office by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) in 2023. Before becoming a minister, Zanin was Lula’s lawyer in the Lava Jato process. He is the rapporteur of the report of the Attorney General’s Office (PGR) against Bolsonaro and also conducts the trial on the terrorist acts of 8 January.
• Cármen Lúcia: The minister is the current president of the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), a position she will hold until August 2026. She was nominated for the Supreme Court by President Lula in 2006. Carmen Lúcia is recognized for her performance in great impact judgments in the STF.
• Luiz Fux: Nominated by former President Dilma Rousseff, Fux took over the Supreme Court in 2011. He is the rapporteur of the case that evaluates the constitutionality of the BETS Law (sports bets), among other important cases.
• Alexandre de Moraes: Rapporteur of the PGR complaint against former President Bolsonaro. He assumed the position of minister in 2017, appointed by former President Michel Temer. He is also the rapporteur of judgments about the terrorist acts of January 8.
• Flávio Dino: Court’s most recent minister, Dino was nominated by Lula and took office in February 2024. Before becoming Minister of the Supreme Court, Dino was Minister of Justice and Public Security and ruled Maranhão for two terms (2015-2022).

Read more: Bolsonaro criticizes STF agility in the complaint trial: “speed of light”

Recently, Moraes has been able to get out of the first class significant results considered more political and of greater relevance. In September 2024, for example, the board unanimously confirmed the suspension of X in Brazil. A month later, the class, also for five to zero, rejected returning Bolsonaro’s passport.

The judgment of the receipt of the complaint will be a preliminary procedure, in which the ministers will evaluate if there is sufficient evidence for the process to advance. If the complaint is accepted, the defendants will become formally accused and the process will go to the instructional phase, with statements by defendants and witnesses, as well as other steps.

A sentence is expected to be issued in 2025, aiming to conclude the case before the 2026 elections and prevent the process from interfering with the electoral calendar. If the defendants do not accept the sentence, they may appeal, which may further prolong the progress of the case. However, the forecast is that the final judgment will take place by the end of 2025, according to the expectations of the Supreme Court.

This is the panorama for the case involving the complaint against Bolsonaro and other accused in an attempted coup d’état, with the Supreme Court seeking to prevent the process from impacting the 2026 elections.