Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes is one of the most powerful and sinister figures in Brazil today. That South American nation — which handed a Senate majority to the Right in the first round of the presidential elections — might have the opportunity to vote out a man who has for years abused his power to curtail freedom of expression and target political opponents.

The elections for the partial renewal of legislative seats on Sunday, October 4, established the Liberal Party — the party of conservative candidate Flávio Bolsonaro — as the dominant force in the Senate. The party secured 28 of the Upper House’s 81 seats, becoming the largest party bloc recorded since 1988.

Removing justices from the Supreme Federal Court requires the support of two-thirds of the upper house. It remains to be seen whether Bolsonaro’s momentum will reach its final phase on the 29th, during the second round of presidential voting.

But how would Moraes be remembered if he were to leave office in a few months?

“Brazilian and foreign media outlets have warned of potential overreach by Moraes — actions that could, for instance, limit freedom of expression.” This is not a claim made by the “far-right.” Even the left-leaning BBC has noted it: “Some also point out that the Supreme Court acts as both prosecutor and judge, initiating investigations while also serving as the court of final appeal.”

Moraes served as the rapporteur in the trial regarding “coup-mongering” charges against former President Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of President Donald Trump during the latter’s first term. The proceedings against him mirrored the efforts pursued against the Republican over the events of January 6 at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

Bolsonaro’s defense team maintains that the case was a witch hunt against conservatives and their leading political figure. In September, a new criminal appeal was filed with the Supreme Court seeking to overturn the 27-year prison sentence currently being served under house arrest.

The legal team presented a technical report detailing “various irregularities” in the chain of custody regarding digital evidence used during the proceedings. Furthermore, they alleged that for some of the material, it was impossible to fully verify the origin, extraction, and processing of the data — limitations that hindered the defense’s ability to scrutinize the evidence.

Not content with merely targeting the opposition leader, in 2019 Moraes set his sights on what he termed “digital militias” — groups of Bolsonaro supporters who, he repeatedly claimed, were spreading “disinformation” online. In response to criticism from these independent commentators, he argued that the “far-right” and “populists” were using social media platforms like X to undermine Brazil’s democratic institutions and seize power unconstitutionally.

Under this vague narrative, the judiciary granted Moraes special powers — the dream of any tyrant. The judge-initiated investigations suspended social media accounts, and even ordered numerous arrests. This was his way of “defending” democracy: by harassing and arresting those who disagreed with his actions.

Moraes emerged as the commander of Brazil’s judicial dictatorship, a figure willing to push boundaries to the extreme. He was prepared not only to ban and persecute social media users but to outlaw social media platforms themselves.

He blocked access to X in Brazil for several weeks and froze bank accounts linked to Starlink — both companies owned by billionaire Elon Musk, who had freed the platform from anti-conservative censorship. Musk championed freedom of speech and called for an end to the pressure exerted on pro-Bolsonaro accounts.

Moraes’s campaign of persecution extended to other digital platforms as well — specifically Rumble, a YouTube equivalent that operates without the digital or content censorship driven by progressive political correctness found on the latter. In February 2021, a justice of the Brazilian Supreme Court ordered the suspension of the platform in the South American country. Moraes had given Rumble a 48-hour deadline to appoint a legal representative in Brazil, but reportedly received no response during that period. Furthermore, he complained that the platform failed to “submit” to the South American country’s judiciary — or, in other words, to him personally.

Moraes took action against the company because, among other things, Rumble had ignored demands to remove the account of conservative journalist Allan dos Santos, who has been in exile in the United States since 2020 after Brazilian authorities issued an arrest warrant due to his pro-Bolsonaro political activism.

For these and other despotic acts, the United States Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on Moraes and his wife in July 2025.

However, after months of tension stemming from tariffs and ideological differences, the leftist government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva appears to have lobbied to lift the measures against the magistrate — a staunch ally within the government’s judicial wing.

Now, in late October, perhaps the representatives of the Brazilian people can put an end to the dark period of persecution for political views — a phenomenon the Left has allowed to spread like a weed across the South American giant.