Overview

• The São Paulo governor received the Colar do Mérito Eleitoral Paulista from the state’s electoral court on Oct. 6, an honor created in 1999 to recognize service to democracy and the electoral process.
• In his acceptance speech, he praised the Justiça Eleitoral’s “loving, professional” and meticulously planned work, citing the logistics to serve Brazil’s largest electorate in São Paulo.
• He said he is convinced the vote will run calmly for about 34 million voters, calling the ballot a fundamental democratic guarantee.
• Framing the decoration as a “promissory note,” he vowed that the state will consistently support the electoral authority and emphasized protecting the “will of the people.”
• The remarks contrast with recent statements in which he said he could not trust the justice system and labeled Minister Alexandre de Moraes a dictator, even as he presents himself as a re‑election pre‑candidate and is discussed as a 2026 presidential possibility.