Brazil Senate To Go Ahead With Rousseff Impeachment Vote: Reports

Brazil's Senate is back on track to hold an impeachment vote against President Dilma Rousseff, after lawmakers rejected a bid to halt the process, media reports said Tuesday. The acting Speaker of Brazil's lower house, Waldir Maranhao, has reversed his earlier decision to annul a lower house ballot held April 17 that set the impeachment process in motion, the BBC reported. The Senate will now proceed with its own vote Wednesday as planned, to decide whether Rousseff should face an impeachment trial. The leftist president faces accusations that she has covered up the extent of shortfalls in Brazil's budget, as the country struggles with an economic downturn. If the impeachment process goes ahead, Rousseff will need to step down during the proceedings and hand power temporarily to a substitute. Stocks on Brazil's Bovespa market closed 1.4% lower Monday as the political uncertainty took hold.