Bannon was previously sentenced to prison for contempt of Congress in October 2022, but remained free pending an appeal. His appeal was then dismissed by a federal court in May.
Bannon was greeted by a group of Trump supporters outside the prison on Monday. Referring to the right-wing populist's likely re-candidacy in the presidential election in November, they carried flags reading “Trump 2024.” Also present was ultra-right congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch Trump supporter.
Bannon was convicted for refusing to comply with a summons from the parliamentary committee investigating the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. By storming the Capitol building in Washington, fanatical Trump supporters wanted to prevent the election victory of current President Joe Biden against Trump from being formally certified there. Another key Trump adviser, Peter Navarro, was also convicted of contempt of Congress and has been serving a four-month prison sentence since March.
Bannon, former head of the ultra-right website Breitbart, was a central figure in Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. After Trump's election victory, he became chief strategist in the White House. Trump fired him in August 2017, however. The two right-wing populists later grew closer again. Bannon also maintains contacts with ultra-right groups in Europe.