What triumphalist narratives about Brazil’s high court and Bolsonaro imprisonment leave out

However, there is a more profound lesson we can learn from Brazil: Democracy depends on more than institutions.

By: Tassiana Moura de Oliveira, University at Albany, State University of New York, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: January 20, 2026

Words: 1,401

Last Updated: 1 month, 3 weeks ago

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By Tassiana Moura de Oliveira, University at Albany, State University of New York

On Jan. 15, 2026, Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered that incarcerated ex-President Jair Bolsonaro be given a significant upgrade in his prison accomodations.

Perhaps not a headline-grabbing development abroad, the news was nonetheless the latest high-profile interaction between Moraes and Bolsonaro – two titans of modern Brazilian politics whose sparring has, in many ways, served as a proxy for …

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