Brazil: Bolsonaro's Son Threatens Electoral Court with Violence

A soldier and a corporal are enough to close Brazil's Supreme Electoral Court (TSE), Eduardo Bolsonaro, the son of Brazilian presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro, said Sunday.

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Brazil Court Summons Bolsonaro on Electoral Crimes

A controversial video surfaced this weekend showing, Bolsonaro, the recently elected Federal Member of Parliament, warning the TSE they would face dire consequences if they contested his father’s candidacy.

Allegations of electoral crimes, specifically the abuse of economic power and illegal use of social media, triggered calls for an investigation to bar the popular right-wing candidate from the presidential race and from politics for the next eight years.

In response to the video,  the president of the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE), Rosa Weber said that state institutions are strong and “all the judges who honor their toga and would not allow themselves to be shaken by any manifestation that eventually can be understood as of inadequate.”

The electoral court is still debating the case, however, and Public Security Minister Raul Jungmann said an investigation into the circulation and purchase of illegal promotional Whatsapp messages preceding the first round of elections will be kept confidential.

The lawsuit asks for the search and seizure of documents at businessman Luciano Hang's home and his company's headquarters. Hang was linked to this scandal by a Folha de S. Paulo report. The coalition is also requesting the seizure of accounting records and access to financial and banking data of all companies allegedly involved in the illegal operation, including Quick Mobile, Yacows, Croc, and SMS Market.

The suit, which also asks that the justice system demand that WhatsApp put in place a containment plan to avoid the dissemination of false information, seeks to stop a “tsunami of fake news” scheduled for next week, as Brazil enters the final days before the second round of votes, scheduled for Oct. 28.

This is not the only lawsuit in the elections. The Democratic Labour Party, whose candidate Ciro Gomes came in third place, is requesting the election be nullified due to illegalities related to the Bolsonaro campaign.