Electoral Court Suspends Crivella Advertising Having Excessive Bolsonaro Involvement

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The 4th district electoral court in Rio de Janeiro decided to suspend campaign advertising of Mayor and candidate for re-election Marcelo Crivella. The decision came on Tuesday, November 10th.

In the decision, the court found that the President is shown for most of the time in Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella’s campaign advertising, which is forbidden under electoral legislation. Mayor Crivella said that as soon as he is notified he will appeal the decision.

According to the decision, the campaign piece is irregular due to the participation of President Jair Bolsonaro in a higher proportion than that allowed by law.

Another irregularity pointed out by the Electoral Justice’s decision is the failure to identify the Rio de Janeiro city government candidate during the advertising broadcast on radio and television.

Crivella’s campaign advertising is one minute long, with President Jair Bolsonaro speaking for about 40 seconds, which exceeds the 25 percent limit for a supporter’s participation in the electoral program, as provided in the election law.

The PDT (Democratic Labor Party) candidate for the city hall, Martha Rocha, was the author of the Irregular Campaign Advertising Report (NIP) filed against the current mayor’s campaign. The state deputy filed for an injunction for the piece to be immediately suspended.

According to Judge Luciana Mocco, Crivella will not be able to broadcast the advertisement during free air time or in any other media.

“After analyzing the video in question, the campaign advertising’s irregularity as shown in the initial petition is evident, given that in addition to dedicating most of its time to President Jair Bolsonaro, it does not include the name of the candidate for mayor or his deputy,” said the judge in the decision.

“Therefore, candidate Marcelo Bezerra Crivella and his coalition should be notified to refrain from advertising irregularly during free air time and in any media outlet,” added the judge.

Marcelo Crivella’s press office told G1 that the candidate has not yet been notified by the Electoral court system. According to the current mayor’s team, he will appeal the decision as soon as he is notified.

Source: G1