Electoral Court Bars Garotinho from Campaign Funds and TV Appearances

The Regional Electoral Court (TRE) of Rio de Janeiro has issued a preliminary injunction barring former governor Anthony Garotinho from accessing electoral and party funds. He is also prohibited from appearing on radio and television election programs while his candidacy registration is under review.

The unanimous decision by the court's six judges is a consequence of Garotinho's definitive conviction, which resulted in the loss of his political rights for eight years. Garotinho, who launched his bid for Governor of Rio in July, faces significant legal hurdles to his candidacy.

Court documents indicate that Garotinho's registration is unlikely to be approved. The ruling highlights that even if the defense's argument about the suspension of political rights is considered, Garotinho would not have been eligible for party affiliation by the April 4 deadline. The court emphasized that with suspended political rights, he could not be affiliated with a political party.

Garotinho's conviction relates to an alleged scheme involving the diversion of R$234.4 million from the Health Secretariat to NGOs that financed his presidential bid in 2006. The irregularities occurred during the administration of his wife, Rosinha Garotinho. While Garotinho's defense maintains that the eight-year suspension began in 2018 and has since expired, the court found his candidacy legally unviable under any timeline presented.

“

Regardless of the established timeline, the claim for candidacy registration is unviable. Following the chronology presented by the respondent himself, if the suspension began on August 1, 2018, it would necessarily end on August 1, 2026, almost four months after the legal deadline for affiliation. Therefore, in any scenario, the respondent did not have effective party affiliation on April 4, 2026.