RIO DE JANEIRO — Nearly two years after former President Dilma Rousseff was impeached by Congress in one of the most stunning political downfalls in Brazil’s history, the nation’s first female leader is hoping to return to the capital as a senator.

Ms. Rousseff this week formally announced her intention to run for a Senate seat representing the state of Minas Gerais, where she was born. The race is likely to pit her against the incumbent, Senator Aécio Neves, whom she narrowly defeated in the 2014 presidential election.

If she wins, Ms. Rousseff would become the latest controversial former president in the region to return to politics as a senator.

Former Presidents Álvaro Uribe Vélez of Colombia and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner of Argentina became high-profile opposition figures in Congress after each had served two presidential terms.