TSE to decide today if there will be a second round in Rio
Exclusion of former governor Garotinho's votes may give Douglas Ruas victory in the first round
TL;DR
- The TSE is set to decide on Anthony Garotinho's request to withdraw his appeal against the rejection of his candidacy for governor of Rio de Janeiro.
- Excluding Garotinho's 274,411 votes could lead to Douglas Ruas being declared the winner in the first round with over 51% of the vote.
- If Garotinho's votes are included, neither Ruas nor Eduardo Paes would exceed 50%, necessitating a second round.
- Garotinho's campaign requested the withdrawal after the election, aiming to favor Ruas, drawing criticism from Paes's campaign.
- The TSE's stance is that withdrawals affecting election outcomes may not be permitted, a key point in this discussion.
- Paes's coalition wants Garotinho excluded but his votes counted for percentage calculations, maintaining a second round.
- The Public Ministry suggested accepting the withdrawal due to Garotinho's ineligibility.
- If the withdrawal is rejected, the TSE will still review the Regional Electoral Court of Rio de Janeiro's (TRE-RJ) decision that denied Garotinho's registration.
- Garotinho was deemed ineligible by the TRE-RJ due to effects of an administrative misconduct conviction.
- The TSE had previously allowed Garotinho to campaign, but different decisions were made regarding his votes' inclusion in calculations.
- The session also includes a review of Deltan Dallagnol's (Novo-PR) Senate candidacy appeal, whose votes were initially annulled by rapporteur Floriano de Azevedo Marques but later validated by Justice Nunes Marques pending a plenary decision.
- Dallagnol's eligibility controversy stems from a 2023 TSE decision that annulled his candidacy registration, causing him to lose his federal deputy mandate due to alleged fraud regarding the "Ficha Limpa" Law.