The initiative, which will now have to be reviewed in the Senate, was approved with 349 affirmative votes
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Brazil's Chamber of Deputies made progress this Wednesday on a key amendment to the Legal Framework for Combating Organized Crime, known as the Anti-Faction Law, by approving a bill that prohibits the right to vote for individuals held in pretrial detention.
The initiative, introduced by federal deputy Marcel van Hattem (Novo), was supported by a broad majority: 349 votes in favor, 40 against, and one abstention.
The proposal was incorporated into the bill by Guilherme Derrite (PP-SP), who stated that the measure aims to reduce the costs and risks arising from the electoral process within penitentiary facilities.
La Cámara de Diputados de Brasil
According to the reasoning included in the text, the logistics of setting up voting sections in prisons require a significant mobilization of material and human resources, in addition to a substantial reinforcement of public security measures.
Although the Federal Constitution establishes that individuals convicted by criminal sentence lose their political rights, current regulations allow provisional or temporary detainees to participate in elections. For Hattem, this situation creates a contradiction. In the amendment, the legislator points out that there is an "incompatibility" between the situation of deprivation of liberty and the full exercise of political rights.
The deputy expands on this argument by stating that "voting is an expression of full citizenship; it presupposes freedom and autonomy of will, conditions that do not exist during custody."
Lula da Silva, presidente de Brasil.
In his proposal, the temporary restriction should not be interpreted as an early penalty for those who have not yet been convicted, nor as a reduction of constitutional guarantees. The text expressly clarifies that the measure "doesn't anticipate possible penalties in the event of conviction, nor does it violate the presumption of innocence."
After its approval in the Chamber of Deputies, the bill will now move to the Senate, where it will be reviewed under the rapporteurship of Senator Alessandro Vieira (MDB-SE). This chamber will determine the next steps for the text and, eventually, its final approval or the introduction of new amendments before its promulgation.
