Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court annulled votes cast for Anthony Garotinho, setting up a recount that is expected to give Douglas Ruas more than half of valid ballots.
The Superior Electoral Court (TSE) ordered a new tally excluding Garotinho’s votes. CNN Brasil reported that judges found his political rights suspended and ruled that he did not meet the eligibility requirements for the 2026 election.
The decision passed 5-2. Reporting judge Floriano Azevedo Marques and four other justices backed the annulment. Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva and Sebastião Alves dos Reis Júnior voted to preserve the votes and hold a runoff.
With Garotinho’s 274,411 votes removed, Ruas’s share is expected to rise from 49.27% in the first round to about 50.9%. UOL and Agência Brasil reported that the recount could give him a first-round victory, although the Rio de Janeiro regional electoral court must formally certify the result.
CNN Brasil political analyst Matheus Teixeira described the votes cast by Marques and Estela Aranha as decisive. He said their nominations to the TSE came through the involvement of Alexandre de Moraes and Flávio Dino. That was the analyst’s interpretation, not part of the court’s ruling.
The court considered two petitions. Garotinho asked to preserve the votes cast for him after withdrawing his appeal, while Eduardo Paes’s campaign sought a recount and a runoff. The two dissenting justices said the votes should count because Garotinho had remained on the ballot while his registration case was pending.