Brazil's Rousseff suspended as Senate backs impeachment trial

The Chamber of Senators plenary session is held in Brasilia, capital of Brazil, on May 11, 2016. The Brazilian Senate on Wednesday started the plenary session debating the voting for the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff in Brasilia. (Xinhua/Andre Dusek/AGENCIA ESTADO)

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 12 -- The Brazilian Senate voted in favor for an impeachment trial against President Dilma Rousseff, suspending the president from office.

President Rousseff will be suspended until the Senate submits the case to a final trial, which will happen in up to 180 days. Vice President Michel Temer will take over in the period.

The Senate gave the go-ahead for the impeachment trial by 55-22 in the early hours of Thursday.

In the impeachment trial, it will take a two-thirds majority to remove Rousseff from the presidency permanently.

Analysts say this may not be difficult as the opposition managed to get two-thirds in the first voting.

Temer, whose Brazilian Democratic Movement Party recently left the ruling coalition, is seen as a spearhead in the impeachment of Rousseff. Media reports say he has an entirely new Cabinet prepared and intends to make significant changes, shifting the direction of the administration.

The president and vice president have yet to make any public statements on the latest developments.