The Regional Electoral Court (TRE) of Paraná resumes this Monday (8) the trial that could lead to the revocation of the mandate of senator Sergio Moro (União-PR), former judge of Operation Lava Jato. It will be the third session to analyze the case, which is scheduled to start at 2 pm.
If he is revoked by the TRE, Moro will not leave his position immediately because the defense will be able to appeal to the Superior Electoral Court (TSE). If the eventual impeachment is confirmed by the TSE, new elections will be called in Paraná to fill the senator’s vacancy. He could also be ineligible for eight years.
So far, the trial is tied at 1 to 1. On Monday (1st), the first day of the trial, judge Luciano Carrasco Falavinha Souza voted against the impeachment. On Wednesday (3), judge José Rodrigo Sade spoke out in favor of the revocation.
On the same day, after the vote was tied, judge Claudia Cristina Cristofani requested a review of the case (more time to analyze) and suspended the judgment. The votes of five magistrates are missing.
The court judges two actions in which the PT, the PL and the Public Electoral Ministry (MPE) accuse Moro of abuse of economic power for allegedly carrying out irregular expenses in the pre-campaign period, in the 2022 elections.
At the end of 2021, Moro was at Podemos and carried out pre-candidacy acts for the Presidency of the Republic. According to the accusation, there was an “illegal disadvantage” in favor of the other candidates for the position of senator due to the “high financial investments” made before Moro left the party and ran for the Senate for the Union.
For the Public Ministry, approximately R$2 million was spent, coming from the Party Fund, on Moro’s membership event for Podemos and on hiring video production for personal promotion, in addition to electoral consultancy. The PL pointed out alleged irregular expenses of R$7 million. For the PT, it was R$21 million.
Defense
On the first day of the trial, Moro’s defense defended the maintenance of the mandate and denied irregularities in the pre-campaign.
According to lawyer Gustavo Guedes, Moro was not elected in Paraná due to the supposed “more robust” pre-campaign, as the parties accuse.
Regarding the expenses, Guedes said that the amounts were “inflated” by the accusation. “There was no slush fund in the elections, there were no irregularities. So, a very creative thesis of abuse in the pre-campaign is created”, he added.