Rousseff ‘to call early elections if reinstated Brazil's president’
-
Dilma Rousseff, who has been suspended as the president of Brazil, participates at a meeting of bloggers and digital activists in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, May 20, 2016.
Dilma Rousseff, who has been suspended as Brazil’s president, has suggested that she will call early elections if she survives an impeachment trial and is reinstated president.
If Rousseff survives the Senate trial in August, she will be allowed to serve out her term until 2018 but early elections are seen as a way out of Brazil's political crisis.
With Rousseff suspended, her supporters have questioned the legitimacy of an interim government led by Vice President Michel Temer.
According to a poll this week, just one in 10 Brazilians view Temer's government positively and a majority want new elections this year.
“Given the level of contradiction among different political actors in this country, it is necessary to appeal to the population,” the 68-year-old Rousseff said in an interview with TV Brasil.
“I think it can be some sort of plebiscite. I won’t give a full menu here, but this is something under intense discussion,” she said.
“Only a popular consultation can wash away and rinse this mess that the administration of Temer is,” Rousseff added.
Temer's camp has opposed the idea of early elections, which would require a constitutional amendment by Congress.
SS
