The first day of free electoral time in the 2026 elections began this Friday without one of the four candidates for governor of Rio de Janeiro. Former governor Anthony Garotinho, from Republicanos, who would have had 1 minute and 6 seconds of airtime on radio and television, was excluded from the premiere following a preliminary ruling by the Regional Electoral Court of Rio de Janeiro.
The governor's advertisement began at 7:16 AM on the radio. On television, the premiere of the block for the position was scheduled for 1:16 PM that same Friday. The originally defined display order had Garotinho appearing first, followed by Eduardo Paes of the PSD, Douglas Ruas of the PL, and William Siri of the PSOL.
With Garotinho's exclusion by court order, the display order was changed, causing Paes to take the first position in the electoral time slot. The specific reasons for the TRE-RJ's preliminary ruling were not detailed in the article.
