The (Superior Electoral Court) recorded this Tuesday (10) two votes for the declaration of ineligibility of the governor of , (), due to abuse of political and economic power in 2022.
The trial was interrupted once again after a request for a review (more time to analyze the case) made by Minister Kassio Nunes Marques. The president of the TSE, Cármen Lúcia, scheduled a new session to analyze the action on March 24th.
Minister Antônio Carlos presented his vote for Castro’s conviction four months after interrupting the trial for a request for review. He followed the understanding of Minister Isabel Galloti, rapporteur of the case, that there was . There are still five votes to be cast.
“According to the evidence collected and the chronology of the facts, notably the state decrees, normative acts, testimonials and reports from the State Court of Auditors, the electoral basis of the conduct remains clear, especially when considering the request for political support for beneficiaries of the program, as well as the existence of leafleting”, said the minister.
The electoral action originated with the call, in June 2022. The case refers to the use of Uerj (University of the State of Rio de Janeiro) and the Ceperj Foundation to pay social project employees in cash and without disclosing their names.
An investigation by Rio discovered cash withdrawals from the “teller’s mouth”. In total, R$248 million were withdrawn from bank branches by tens of thousands of people who were part of the alleged scheme. Hiring was only interrupted in August, after public civil action by the state Public Ministry.
Castro did not comment on the vote. On previous occasions, the governor denied irregularities and said he had interrupted the projects as soon as suspicions were raised.
The minister also voted for the impeachment and ineligibility of the removed president of Alerj (Rio’s Legislative Assembly), Rodrigo Bacellar (), at the time Castro’s government secretary.
“Testimony converges regarding the threat of dismissal from the program, from the functions of those who did not accept to participate in the campaign, a circumstance that demonstrates not only the uniformity of the narratives, but also the existence of a structured method of coercion aimed at transforming temporary hires into an instrument of electoral promotion”, stated the judge.
“What is observed is a structured method of personal promotion funded by the treasury, with a misuse of the functions of irregularly hired temporary employees. This constitutes a violation of article 73, item 2, of the election law, given the massive and indiscriminate use of the public machine as a true instrument of regimentation of private individuals, paid with public resources and hired illegally, without any type of control.”
The case generated two judicial electoral investigation actions, one filed by the Marcelo Freixo (PT) ticket, defeated in the election, and another by the Electoral Prosecutor’s Office. (Regional Electoral Court of Rio de Janeiro) in May 2024 in a close vote, by 4 to 3. The Public Electoral Ministry took the case to the TSE, appealing the decision.
The trial could affect Castro’s electoral plans for this year. He plans to resign by April to run for the Senate.
If he is revoked, a new direct election must be held to complete the term. If the governor resigns sooner, Rio de Janeiro will have an unprecedented and, so far, unpredictable indirect election for the command of the Guanabara Palace until the end of this year.
The lack of definition is the result of Castro’s efforts in the first half of last year to give visibility to Bacellar, at the time his favorite for the succession.
The disintegration of the succession line began in May, when the governor convinced former vice-governor Thiago Pampolha to leave his position to (State Audit Court) in order to make room for the then president of the Assembly.
The design predicted Castro’s resignation to run for the Senate. Under the plan, Bacellar would be chosen by Alerj, where he had broad support, in an indirect election as the new governor to run for re-election in October.
As determined by Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the (Supreme Federal Court), the name of the “buffer governor” became a topic of discussion within the PL, which has a majority in Alerj. Bacellar was removed on suspicion of leaking information about the operation, linked to Comando Vermelho. He denies it.
