<p> Brazil woke on Monday to deep political crisis after lawmakers authorised impeachment proceedings against President Dilma Rousseff, sparking claims that democracy was under threat in Latin America’s biggest country.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The Opposition deputies in the lower house of Congress needed 342 of the 513 votes, or a two thirds majority, to send Rousseff to the Senate, which will now decide whether to open a trial. They got there near midnight on Sunday after five hours of voting.<br /><br />Wild cheering and a burst of confetti erupted from opposition ranks at the 342nd vote, countered by furious jeering from Rousseff allies in a snapshot of the bitter mood consuming Brazil just four months before Rio de Janeiro hosts the Olympics.<br /><br />Presidential chief of staff Jacques Wagner accused deputies of voting for impeachment without proving that the leftist president, who is accused of illegally manipulating budget figures, had committed a serious crime.<br /><br />“In this way, the Chamber of Deputies is threatening to interrupt 30 years of democracy in the country,” he said, referring to the end of a military dictatorship in 1985.<br /><br />There was expected to be a euphoric reaction from the financial markets which have been betting heavily on a Rousseff exit and the advent of a more business-friendly government to kickstart Brazil’s flailing economy.<br /><br />Outside Congress, where tens of thousands of people were watching giant TV screens, the split was echoed on a mass scale — with opposition supporters partying and Rousseff loyalists in despair.<br /><br />If, as many expect, the Senate goes on to impeach the leftist president, Vice-President Michel Temer — who abandoned Rousseff to become a key opponent — will assume power.<br /><br />Rousseff, 68, is accused of illegal accounting manoeuvres to mask government shortfalls during her 2014 re-election. Many Brazilians also hold her responsible for the economic mess and a massive corruption scandal centered on state oil company Petrobras, a toxic record that has left her government with 10 per cent approval ratings.<br /><br />Now the decision by the lower house moves the matter to the Senate, which is expected to vote in May on whether to open a trial. In case of a green light there — which experts consider almost certain — Rousseff would step down for up to 180 days while the trial got under way.<br /><br />If the Senate then voted by a two-thirds majority for impeachment, Rousseff would be ousted. Temer would stay on until elections in 2018.<br /></p>
<p> Brazil woke on Monday to deep political crisis after lawmakers authorised impeachment proceedings against President Dilma Rousseff, sparking claims that democracy was under threat in Latin America’s biggest country.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The Opposition deputies in the lower house of Congress needed 342 of the 513 votes, or a two thirds majority, to send Rousseff to the Senate, which will now decide whether to open a trial. They got there near midnight on Sunday after five hours of voting.<br /><br />Wild cheering and a burst of confetti erupted from opposition ranks at the 342nd vote, countered by furious jeering from Rousseff allies in a snapshot of the bitter mood consuming Brazil just four months before Rio de Janeiro hosts the Olympics.<br /><br />Presidential chief of staff Jacques Wagner accused deputies of voting for impeachment without proving that the leftist president, who is accused of illegally manipulating budget figures, had committed a serious crime.<br /><br />“In this way, the Chamber of Deputies is threatening to interrupt 30 years of democracy in the country,” he said, referring to the end of a military dictatorship in 1985.<br /><br />There was expected to be a euphoric reaction from the financial markets which have been betting heavily on a Rousseff exit and the advent of a more business-friendly government to kickstart Brazil’s flailing economy.<br /><br />Outside Congress, where tens of thousands of people were watching giant TV screens, the split was echoed on a mass scale — with opposition supporters partying and Rousseff loyalists in despair.<br /><br />If, as many expect, the Senate goes on to impeach the leftist president, Vice-President Michel Temer — who abandoned Rousseff to become a key opponent — will assume power.<br /><br />Rousseff, 68, is accused of illegal accounting manoeuvres to mask government shortfalls during her 2014 re-election. Many Brazilians also hold her responsible for the economic mess and a massive corruption scandal centered on state oil company Petrobras, a toxic record that has left her government with 10 per cent approval ratings.<br /><br />Now the decision by the lower house moves the matter to the Senate, which is expected to vote in May on whether to open a trial. In case of a green light there — which experts consider almost certain — Rousseff would step down for up to 180 days while the trial got under way.<br /><br />If the Senate then voted by a two-thirds majority for impeachment, Rousseff would be ousted. Temer would stay on until elections in 2018.<br /></p>