At a time when the (Supreme Federal Court), 75% of Brazilians say that the court’s ministers have too much power and 71% consider that the court is essential in protecting democracy, according to research.
2,004 people were interviewed, from April 7th to 9th, in 137 municipalities. The margin of error for the total sample is plus or minus 2 percentage points. The research was registered with the TSE under number BR-03770/2026.
The survey also shows that 75% say that people believe less in the STF now than in the past. As these questions were asked for the first time by the institute, there is no previous comparative data.
Among those who declared that they voted for (PL) for president in the second round in 2022, 88% say that the Supreme Court has too much power. Among those who voted for (PT), the rate is lower, but still reaches almost two thirds of respondents, standing at 64%. In these cuts, the margins of error are, respectively, 4 and 3 points.
The scenario is reversed in the next question: among those who say they voted for the PT, 84% agree with the statement that the Supreme Court is essential to protect democracy in Brazil. This percentage is 60% among those who declare that they voted for Bolsonaro — a rate that may even surprise, given the former president throughout his term and also in recent years, amid the ongoing investigations into the 8th of January and the coup plot.
Among those who say they voted blank, null or for no candidate, 67% say that members of the court have excessive power and 73% say that the court is important for democracy.
Dragged to the center of public debate, the STF and its members never left the spotlight, given the constant accumulation of cases on its agenda that had great repercussions on the country’s political scene.
The list of cases decided by the court involving prominent politicians included Lava Jato, the rite of the (PT), the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the cases.
Despite having undertaken a series of heterodox measures in recent years, the Supreme Court’s actions were supported by a portion of public opinion in the face of Bolsonaro’s authoritarian attacks.
More recently, however, another aspect has increased the pressure and strain on the court: suspicions regarding the involvement of some of its ministers with the former banker and the .
A measure defended by the president of the STF himself, Edson Fachin, has been one of the demands from civil society and the business community in relation to the court.
The Supreme Court and its ministers should be at the center of electoral campaigns this year for candidates for the Senate by Bolsonaro’s political group, in the next legislature.
Strong jurists in court, including stricter rules on monocratic decisions. One of the arguments is that if the court does not act on its own to adapt its functioning, the reform could come from outside — and not necessarily to improve it.
