Image copyright TIMBUKTU CITY/AP Image caption Dilma Rousseff, winner of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize, was succeeded by Michel Temer
After all Dilma Rousseff has done for her country she is widely disliked, which may well have contributed to her impeachment by a committee of 22 senators (14 from the Senate, 11 from the Chamber of Deputies).
Despite the precedent of 12 previous sessions of impeachment proceedings, she is the first to face trial.
She is fighting for her political life before a packed House of Deputies as the chamber votes by secret ballot whether to put her on trial or reject the constitutionality of the committee.
Ms Rousseff has dismissed the accusations against her as a “coup attempt”.
She has the support of most Brazilians, according to polls, but opposition leader Aecio Neves insists she has “a lot of work to do” to gain public support, with the vote due on 26 November.
Image copyright AFP Image caption Dilma Rousseff’s government faced criticisms of economic mismanagement
Ex-President Temer, who must now face impeachment proceedings after being narrowly defeated in the 2014 presidential election, is expected to support the former president in the impeachment trial.
This was in part because he had threatened to overthrow Ms Rousseff should her government be found to have committed impeachable offences, which includes alleged violation of Brazil’s fiscal laws.
While leaders of a middle-of-the-road coalition tend to avoid impeachment proceedings, it has also become a forum for politicians from all parties – including former presidents Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Fernando Henrique Cardoso – to offer their support to Ms Rousseff.