RIO DE JANEIRO, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- The president of Brazil's Supreme Court Carmen Lucia defended the country's electoral laws on Monday to refute the support for imprisoned ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's presidential candidacy.
Lucia specifically mentioned the country's Clean Record Law, which prohibits a person convicted of a crime from running for public office, during a talk at a Brazilian university.
All eyes are on the law because under its terms, Lula, who is currently serving a 12-year prison term for corruption and money laundering, would not be eligible to run for president in October.
Lucia also defended the incumbent government's legitimacy, saying it was elected through direct elections.
Brazilian President Michel Temer took office in 2016 by way of the vice presidency, after former President Dilma Rousseff of the Workers' Party was impeached halfway through her second term.
A series of protests were staged over the past months to pressure the authorities to release Lula so the two-time president can run for re-election by registering as the candidate of the Workers' Party before the deadline of Aug. 15.
