Alexandre de Moraes, The One Locked Horns With Elon Musk (image @alexandre)

Alexandre de Moraes, Brazil’s Supreme Court Judge is making netizens take double take. With his probe against former President of the country, Jair Bolsonaro’s alleged attacks on democracy, and his stand off with X CEO Elon Musk, Moraes is trending online.

Moraes suspended X from Brazil, over the question of spreading disinformation in the country. Musk in return branded Moraes as an evil dictator cosplaying as a judge” and accused him of “trying to destroy democracy in Brazil”.

The country is deeply divided over the issue. Moraes, who is known by his nickname “Xandao”, is considered an immensely powerful judge. He also heads the Superior Electoral Tribunal (TSE), and is hated by the far right, which accuses him of censorship and abuse of office.

While for others, Moraes is a hero who is using his position to save the country and its democracy.

Also Read: Suspension Of X In Brazil; Musk Vows To Publish The Judge’s “Long List Of Crimes”

Moraes worked as a Sao Paulo state prosecutor, then went on to become state security secretary. Owning the label of ‘hardliner’, he drew criticism from left-wing activists, who accused him of repressing social movements.

The law expert served as justice minister under centre-right ex-president Michel Temer, and the one who named him to the Supreme Court in 2017.

“Legal expertise has played a part in his meteoric rise, but what put him on the Supreme Court, and 99 per cent of his career, is politics. He’s a political animal,” constitutional law expert Antonio Carlos de Freitas told AFP.

While he is labelled as a hardliner, insiders from the apex court call him a pragmatist with a gift for engaging in dialogue with various players, including the military.

During the ex-President Bolsonaro’s administration (2019-2022), Moraes ordered investigations of several of the leader’s allies. He called Moraes “scum” and vowed to stop following his rulings.

Also Read: Why Telegram’s Durov Was Arrested While Zuckerberg Remains Free: Elon Musk

The Judge has presided over a slew of cases targeting the politician dubbed the “Tropical Trump,” who has been barred from running for office until 2030 over his attempts to discredit the electoral system, as per the decision delivered by the TSE.

His current investigation against Bolsonaro includes charges against him and his inner circles of plotting a coup to stay in power despite losing the 2022 elections to veteran leftist Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

His standoff with Elon Musk can be traced back to 2022, when he aggressively used his position to fight election disinformation on social media, including blocking of some some prominent right-wing figures’ accounts. This led to the tiff with Musk, who was accused of transforming his social media platform into a megaphone for right-wing conspiracy theories. Though Moraes seldom posts on his X account, @alexandre, he have millions of followers.