April 17 2016
Brasilia, Brazil (CNN)Brazilian lawmakers shouted, scuffled and even sang as they debated whether to impeach the country's President Sunday.
And so far, the results don't seem to be falling in President Dilma Rousseff's favor.
After nearly three hours of voting, at least 225 lawmakers in Brazil's lower house had voted in favor of impeachment, while more than 70 had voted against it.
For the measure to pass, at least 342 of 513 lawmakers must approve it.
The impeachment motion would next go to the country's Senate. If a majority approves it there, Rousseff will have to step down for 180 days to defend herself in an impeachment trial.
If the motion is approved, Rousseff could be suspended as early as May. That would be about three months before the Summer Olympics kick off in Rio de Janeiro, an event that was supposed to showcase Brazil as a rising power on the global stage.
Sunday's vote came after weeks of raucous debates inside Brazil's Congress and rival protests outside.
As lawmakers made fiery speeches, throngs of demonstrators waited for word of the results. In Copacabana, Brazil, three big-screen TVs were set up for people to watch the proceedings.
In Brasilia, police erected a 1-kilometer-long barricade on the lawn in front of Congress to separate anti-government protesters from Rousseff supporters.
Source : http://edition.cnn.com/2016/04/17/americas/brazil-impeachment-dilma-rousseff/index.html
