TSE Rapporteur Votes to Oust Rio Governor Cláudio Castro as Trial Is Paused

Overview

• Relator Isabel Gallotti voted to annul the mandates of Cláudio Castro and Alerj president Rodrigo Bacellar, declare them ineligible for eight years, and trigger supplemental elections, with vote retallying tied to Bacellar’s seat.
• Minister Antonio Carlos Ferreira requested more time to review the case, suspending the TSE trial with no date set for its resumption.
• The actions allege the state used Ceperj and Uerj to create tens of thousands of temporary jobs as campaign operatives, with cash withdrawals at bank counters, including more than R$200 million cited at a single branch in Campos dos Goytacazes.
• The Electoral Prosecutor’s Office pressed for condemnation, pointing to 27,665 hires and R$248 million in spending, while the vice–prosecutor cited R$519 million paid in early 2022, highlighting disputed totals.
• Castro was acquitted 4–3 by the TRE-RJ in May 2024, and his defense denies wrongdoing and ties to the campaign, leaving the final outcome contingent on the remaining votes at the TSE.