Brazil's largest party, the Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB) decided unanimously in just a few minutes on Tuesday to leave the ruling coalition and pull its six ministers from Cabinet and all party members from government appointments.
Marina Silva, an environmentalist and political leader who came third in presidential elections in 2010 and 2014, slammed the PMDB for opportunism in severing its alliance with Rousseff's party.
After this development, the odds are raising that Rousseff may be facing an impeachment over the mismanaging of public accounts and allegedly breaking budget laws to boost spending in the run-up to her 2014 re-election.
If that happens, Vice President Michel Temer, leader of the PMDB, will become President. Rousseff has denied any wrongdoing and called the impeachment efforts a coup to oust her ruling Workers' Party (PT).
More than 1 million Brazilians took to the streets this month to protest at the worst recession in decades and a vast corruption scandal at state oil company Petrobras PETR4.SA. But at the same time, Rousseff’s supporters are also organizing demonstrations today in more than 31 cities all over the country to show their support.
Against PMDB's wishes, Agriculture Minister Katia Abreu said in a message on Twitter that she would stay in the Cabinet as long as Rousseff needed her. Other PMDB ministers seem to be staying, at least until Rousseff asks for their portfolios.
Rousseff needs one-third of the 513 votes in the chamber in her favor to halt impeachment. Her own party has 58 votes, whereas, PMDB has 68 votes. It has already been announced that another coalition ally, the Progressive Party (PP) will hold a meeting on April 11-12 to decide whether to abandon the government as well. So far, this seems to be the most likely scenario. The loss of the PP, which has 49 seats in the lower house, would make it all but impossible for Rousseff to muster the 171 votes needed to avoid impeachment.