Douglas Ruas of the Liberal Party (PL) has moved from a runoff-bound result to a first-round victory in Rio de Janeiro’s gubernatorial election after the state electoral court recalculated valid votes.

For Ruas and his supporters, the outcome is political as well as procedural. After the revised tally gave him 50.88% of valid votes, up from 49.27%, he thanked voters for what he described as “the hope of millions of people and the enormous responsibility of building a better future for our Rio.” He added: “Our people chose change, renewal and a new path for our state.”¹ Ruas said he would govern for all residents of Rio de Janeiro state and pursue a safer, more inclusive state with greater opportunity.

The electoral authorities’ explanation, however, emphasizes that voters did not cast new ballots and that the shift resulted from the legal treatment of votes for Anthony Garotinho of Republicanos. The Superior Electoral Court upheld the rejection of Garotinho’s candidacy, linked in the account to a 2018 administrative-impropriety conviction, and his 274,411 votes were voided.²

Court official Cláudio de Mello Tavares said, “The votes are exactly the same ones that Rio voters deposited in the ballot boxes on October 4. What changes is the calculation base.”² With Garotinho’s votes removed from the valid-vote denominator, Ruas rose to 50.88%, while Eduardo Paes of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) rose from 42.76% to 44.16%.

The revised count removes the need for a second round, but the court’s process is not fully complete. The technical report remains open to review and possible complaints before the TRE-RJ plenary approves the report and formally proclaims the final result, scheduled for October 15.²