Douglas Ruas secured the Rio de Janeiro governorship in the first round after the Superior Electoral Court and regional tribunal invalidated Anthony Garotinho’s roughly 274,000 ballots on eligibility grounds tied to a prior administrative misconduct ruling, lifting Ruas from 49.27% to 50.88% of valid votes. Eduardo Paes, the second-place finisher backed by President Lula’s coalition, conceded following an unsuccessful appeal to preserve a runoff. Ruas, the state assembly president and PL candidate aligned with Flávio Bolsonaro, now awaits formal proclamation scheduled for October 15. Trader consensus at 98.5% for Ruas reflects this judicial resolution and Paes’s acceptance, though residual uncertainty persists around any last-minute procedural challenges or higher-court interventions before certification.