In a climax to the trial, the president, who was suspended from office in May, will address the Senate on Monday, August 29.
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Vice President Michel Temer, Rousseff’s one-time ally who turned nemesis, took over.
Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s tenure looks in jeopardy as a survey showed Wednesday the Senate is all but ready to vote her out of office.
A study carried out by Globo has claimed that 52 are now planning to vote against her, with only 19 supporting her and 10 yet to decide.
The trial, secured through a 59-21 vote in the Senate two weeks ago during the Rio Olympics, will begin by hearing witness statements, which are expected to last between two to four days.
The sessions, scheduled to conclude on August 31 with the final voting on removing the suspended head of State definitely or not, will be chaired by the president of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), Ricardo Lewandowski, as established by the Constitution.
“No one here has the right to judge anybody”, she said.
In an audacious move, Rousseff named her embattled mentor her new chief of staff on March 16.
Rousseff denies wrongdoing. Instead, she says her enemies are conducting a “coup”.
Temer’s right-leaning government has held last-minute talks with senators and political parties to shore up votes against Rousseff.
The details of the alleged bookkeeping irregularities have been ignored by average Brazilians, most of whom want to see Ms. Rousseff booted, according to opinion polls. President Rousseff is the most high-profile politician to be snared by the scandal, and she will nearly certainly be permanently removed from office by the Senate within a few weeks.
And while Temer has done much to bolster the Brazilian economy and to boost investor confidence in the lead-up to the global sporting event, his role in his predecessor’s impeachment process has painted him in an unfavorable light for crowds of Rousseff supporters who took to the streets to protest her suspension.
If her fall does happen, Michel Temer will complete the term through the end of 2018. Brazil’s Bovespa stock exchange is up 36% so far this year, the most of any major world market. Still, investors and members of Temer’s fragile coalition are concerned he has yet to unveil measures to control the deficit.
A draft budget for next year is not expected in Congress until August 31, after the Senate vote, by which time Temer could have more political leverage to push through unpopular austerity measures.
Temer’s government has announced plans to overhaul Brazil’s generous pensions system and put a lid on spiraling public spending. But for that to happen, both she and Temer would have to resign or be removed. He is then expected to address the nation before heading to the summit of the G20 group of leading economies in Hangzhou, China on September 4-5 on his first trip overseas.
Francis has since faced accusations of meddling in Brazilian politics with some saying the letter is an endorsement of Rousseff.
Without the legal protection of her presidential status, Rousseff could find herself in court facing an investigation into whether she and former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva tried to obstruct the Petrobras corruption probe.
Yet party leader Lula came to her defence on Thursday. “Today is a shameful day”.
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Temer has told local media he expects to have enough senators on his side to finally sack his rival.
