Momentum is on their side, but the hardest is yet to come.
Over the last several years, Brazil has gone through political and legal turmoil that has polarized the public into warring camps, revived forgotten fears of a latter-day military coup, and reignited racial and economic discourse in a way not experienced for an extended period of time.
Despite the overwhelming support enjoyed by the pro-impeachment campaign, the process itself proved to be slow and painful—and can be viewed as a traumatic event for Brazil’s institutions and society as a whole. The country now finds itself wounded and facing the same problems as before—only now there is no prominent figure like Rousseff to absorb the public’s blame and anger.
The new government led by President Michel Temer—Rousseff’s former deputy—has minimal room for error or even to adapt. The public’s expectations are high, and the government is expected to provide impossibly immediate solutions to Brazil’s deep problems.
Crucial Days Ahead