Republicanos Officially Nominate Garotinho for Rio de Janeiro Governor

The Republicanos party has officially nominated Anthony Garotinho as its candidate for governor of Rio de Janeiro at a convention held in the state capital. Garotinho, who previously served as governor from 1999 to 2002 before resigning to run for president, will have Colonel Venâncio Moura, a former commander of the elite BOPE police unit during Garotinho's tenure, as his running mate.

The party's convention also formalized candidacies for the Senate, including federal deputy and former Rio mayor Marcelo Crivella, and Waguinho, a former mayor of Belford Roxo and an ally of President Lula. Garotinho's nomination follows internal competition within the party, having been selected over André Português, the former mayor of Miguel Pereira.

Garotinho has recently been active on podcasts, claiming to possess classified information from federal police investigations implicating national and state political figures. He notably alleged access to a video of a supposed "astronauts' night," a party allegedly hosted by former banker Daniel Vorcaro and attended by politicians. A clip of Garotinho discussing these alleged images was reposted by Michelle Bolsonaro amid her public dispute with Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, though Garotinho stated the senator did not appear in the footage.

This political maneuvering occurs while Garotinho's legal standing has seen recent developments. In March, Supreme Court Minister Cristiano Zanin annulled a previous conviction against Garotinho related to vote-buying accusations from the 2016 municipal elections. The conviction, which carried a 13-year prison sentence, was overturned due to evidence deemed illicit by the Supreme Court, obtained from seized computers.