Brazil Supreme Court sets August hearing on Rio de Janeiro interim governorship election

Brazil's Supreme Court (STF) scheduled a hearing for 19 August to decide the process for electing a new interim governor of Rio de Janeiro. The case stems from a dispute between the state Social Democratic Party (PSD), which seeks direct popular elections, and the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), which had ordered an indirect election by the state legislature.

Former governor Claudio Castro resigned in March and was subsequently declared ineligible by the TSE. With the vice‑governor and the former head of the state assembly also out of office, the president of the Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice, Ricardo Couto de Castro, is currently serving as interim governor. The STF had paused the case in April after a request for a view by minister Flávio Dino. The upcoming hearing will determine whether a direct vote will replace the previously planned indirect election for the "mandato‑tampão" that runs until the end of 2026.