Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court (TSE) has withdrawn the provisional protections that had allowed Anthony Garotinho to campaign for governor of Rio de Janeiro while appealing the rejection of his candidacy. His name and number will remain on electronic ballots, but votes cast for him on Sunday will be recorded as anulados sub judice — null pending judicial review — rather than counted as valid.¹

The court’s position rests on the current status of the case. Rio’s regional electoral court unanimously rejected Garotinho’s registration, finding both a lack of eligibility conditions and grounds for ineligibility tied to an administrative-impropriety conviction. Justice Floriano de Azevedo Marques said the electoral system should avoid “voter uncertainty and instability in the election” as the appeal remains unresolved.²

Garotinho’s defense offers a different legal reading: it says the eight-year suspension of his political rights should run from August 2018, when it says the conviction became final, rather than from a 2025 certification cited by the regional court. Under the defense’s calculation, the restriction would have expired in August 2026; under the court’s interpretation, it continues until July 2033.³

The ruling does not finally decide the appeal. If the TSE later reverses the registration denial, the votes may be validated; if it upholds the denial, they remain invalid. In the meantime, Garotinho also loses access to campaign and party funds and free electoral broadcasting.¹

The practical consequence could be significant. A Datafolha poll cited by coverage put Eduardo Paes at 47% of valid votes, Douglas Ruas at 35%, and Garotinho at 8%. Excluding Garotinho’s votes from the valid-vote base could raise Paes to 51%, enough for a first-round victory, though the final calculation depends on the vote and electoral authorities’ tabulation rules.³