Assembly speaker Ruas wins Rio governor election with 50.88% — The Rio Times

The Electoral Court of the State of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil confirmed Douglas Ruas's victory in the gubernatorial election after recalculating vote shares. The Liberal Party candidate received 4,271,199 votes, or 50.88% of valid ballots, allowing him to win in the first round, The Rio Times reports.

The recalculation was conducted on October 10 after Brazil's Superior Electoral Court annulled 274,411 votes cast for former governor Anthony Garotinho. His candidacy had previously been rejected due to a ruling in a case involving administrative violations, but the politician remained on the ballot while the decision was being appealed.

Change in vote distribution

During the initial count on October 4, Ruas had 49.27% of valid votes. After ballots cast for Garotinho were excluded, his share rose to 50.88%. His main rival, Eduardo Paes, received 3,706,984 votes, or 44.16%. The difference between them was 564,215 votes.

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The president of the state electoral court, Claudio de Mello Tavares, stressed that there was no new vote or recount of ballots. The court changed only the basis for calculating the shares of valid votes.

Appeal and taking office

Paes's coalition asked the Federal Supreme Court to suspend the decision regarding Garotinho's votes, but Justice Cristiano Zanin refused on procedural grounds. Paes said he would not challenge the result further.

The official proclamation of the results was scheduled for October 15 after the deadline for possible complaints expired. Ruas, a former civil police officer and lawyer, is to take office in January. His running mate, Fernanda Loubak, will become the state's vice governor.