Brazil's lower house of congress votes to start impeachment proceedings against President Dilma Rousseff, accused of manipulating government figures.

The BBC's Wrye Davies tweets a photograph of a crowd, some wearing Brazil football tops, cheering as Dilma Rousseff looks set for defeat in the lower house of Congress. 

Opponents of President Rousseff wore yellow and green to indicate their preference in the vote, while supporters of the Workers' Party wore red.

Brazil's governing Workers' Party admits defeat in a lower house impeachment vote against President Dilma Rousseff.

The mood among supporters of President Rousseff darkened as her opponents got closer to the 342 they need for the impeachment proceedings to move to the next stage.  

Image source, EPA

Image source, EPA

A 2015 article in Forbes, external magazine predicted that there would be "gridlock" in Brazil's Congress if President Rousseff was impeached.

"Impeaching the president won’t solve [Brazil's] problems," wrote Kenneth Rapoza at the time.

MPs are still voting on the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff.

But with the votes very close to a majority, the country's Workers' Party has conceded defeat.

It does not mean President Rousseff has lost her position. The matter will go to the Senate for another vote, this time on whether to launch a trial.

What if she is impeached?

BBC News takes a look at who could be the next President of Brazil.

The pro-impeachment camp in the lower house of Congress only needs 20 more votes to reach the 342 votes needed for the impeachment proceedings to reach the next stage, 

BBC Brasil's reporter in the lower house of Congress, Mariana Schreiber, says the government has admitted defeat but that it vows to take its fight to the next stage.

She says the leader of the Workers' Party in the lower house, Jose Guimaraes, said the battle would now be fought in the streets and in the Senate. 

"The government is united in its aim to prevent the coup in the Senate."

Five hours after the voting began, almost 400 MPs have had their say. The tally so far is: 293 "yes" votes; 96 "no" votes; four abstentions and two absent MPs.

A supporter of Dilma Rousseff in Sao Paulo tells BBC Brasil reporter Rafael Barifouse of her worries:

Image source, BBC World

Reporter Daniel Gallas in Sao Paulo tells BBC World News that although things are "not looking good" for Dilma Rousseff, many of the people due to vote later on will be supporting her.

"It's going to be down to the wire," he says.

Optimism is increasing among opponents of President Rousseff as the votes in favour of her impeachment continue to rise.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Opponents of President Rousseff are now only 100 votes short of the necessary 342 needed to send a motion to impeach her to the Senate. Another 185 lawmakers have yet to vote. 

Michel Temer is the Vice President of Brazil and will become president if Dilma Rousseff is impeached.

This photograph shows him watching the proceedings in Congress, as vote after vote stacks up against Ms Rousseff.

The speaker of the lower house, Eduardo Cunha, has voted in favour of impeachment proceeding against President Dilma Rousseff. Mr Cunha has been one of the key figures in this political drama. Once an ally of Ms Rousseff, he has turned into one of her fiercest rivals. Mr Cunha is facing legal problems of his own and his critics say his support for Ms Rousseff's impeachment is hypocritical. Mr Cunha is accused of taking millions of dollars in bribes, which he denies. 

In Dilma Rousseff's last post on Facebook, she used a hashtag that translates as "respect the ballot box", which seems to be directed at the MPs who want to see her impeached.

She was narrowly re-elected to the presidency in 2014, with 51.6% of the vote.

Her post also calls the impeachment proceedings a "coup".

Image source, Twitter

Three hundred MPs have now voted in Brazil's lower house. Of these, 224 have voted in favour of the impeachment proceedings against Dilma Rousseff. But in order for the motion to make it to the next stage, another 118 will have to add their votes to the "yes" camp. 

Two hundred lawmakers in Brazil's lower house of Congress have now voted in favour of impeachment proceedings against President Rousseff to proceed. They need 342 votes in order for the motion to go to the Senate. Two-hundred-and-fifty-nine MPs are yet to vote.