Voters in five cities return to the polls today.

TSE - More than 67,8 voters from five municipalities in three states will return to the polls to choose their mayors this Sunday (2). The new elections are necessary due to the annulment of the elections held in October last year. In São Paulo, the municipalities of Cananéia and General Salgado will have new elections. In Pernambuco, voters in Primavera and Santa Maria da Boa Vista will return to the polls, while in Piauí, only the municipality of Simões will hold a new election.

In the five municipalities, the election was annulled by the Electoral Court because the candidate who obtained more than 50% of the valid votes in October 2012 had their candidacy registration rejected.

General Salgado-SP

The 8.476 voters of General Salgado, located in the northwest of the State of São Paulo, will choose the mayor and vice-mayor of the municipality from among four candidates: Adriano Eugênio Barbosa (PSDB), Emanuel Ribeiro Dezidério (PRB), Leandro Rogério de Oliveira (PR), and Luciana Dias Rodrigues (PPS).

The new election in General Salgado will take place because the candidate David José Martins Rodrigues (DEM), elected mayor in 2012 with 4.558 votes, had his candidacy registration rejected based on the Clean Slate Law (LC 135/2010). He contested the October election sub judice, that is, awaiting judgment on an appeal by the Electoral Court. The appeal was denied.

Cananéia-SP

In Cananéia, a new election will take place because the mayor elected in October 2012, Adriano Cesar Dias (PSDB), had his mandate revoked also due to the Clean Record Law. Dias is facing administrative proceedings for having been dismissed from public service.

Three candidates are vying for the votes of Cananéia's 10.237 voters: Cláudia Terezinha Santos Araújo dos Santos Oliveira Rosa (PSD), Pedro Ferreira Dias Filho, known as "Pedrinho" (PV), and Robson da Silva Leonel (PT).

Spring-PE

In the municipality of Primavera, the mandate of the elected mayor, Rômulo César Peixoto (PRTB), was challenged because he was accused of vote buying. After the decision of the Regional Electoral Court of Pernambuco (TRE-PE), the runner-up, Jadeíldo Gouveia (PR), was sworn in as mayor, but an injunction from the TSE prevented him from being certified as mayor of the municipality, also based on the Clean Record Law.

Primavera has 10.238 eligible voters for the new election, and four candidates will compete for the mayor's position: Fernando Antônio Feitosa Cavalcanti, known as "Fernando Dentista" (PDT); Tânia Maria Dória de Souza Santos Barros, known as "Dra. Tânia" (PSC); Jadeíldo Gouveia da Silva, known as "Galego do Gás" (PR); and Severina Moura Batista Peixoto, known as "Naza Pão Com Ovo" (PRTB).

Santa Maria da Boa Vista-PE

In the city of Santa Maria da Boa Vista, the candidate elected in 2012, Jetro Gomes (PSB), was not certified and did not take office due to a decision by the TRE-PE (Regional Electoral Court of Pernambuco). Jetro Gomes was removed from office due to accusations of abuse of economic and political power and rejection of public accounts, according to the Clean Record Law, which made him ineligible.

The municipality has 27.274 eligible voters to choose their representatives from among three candidates for mayor of the city: Antônio Pereira de Souza (PV), Eliane Rodrigues da Costa Gomes (PSL), and Paulo Jorge da Silva Pontes (PRP).

Simões-PI

The 11.498 voters of Simões, in Piauí, return to the polls this Sunday (2) to choose the new mayor and vice-mayor of the municipality. Candidates Maria Adelaide Moura de Carvalho (PRTB) and Francisco Dogizete Pereira (DEM) are running. Simões is located 417 kilometers south of Teresina.

The municipality will hold a new election because the registration of Edilberto Abdias de Carvalho, elected in October 2012, was rejected by the TSE (Superior Electoral Court). The Court denied the candidate's appeal, understanding that he was running for a third term in the same office, which is prohibited by the Electoral Court.

Elections in the second half of the year

Since the beginning of this year, new elections have been held in 27 municipalities across 11 states, and new elections have already been scheduled for July and August in 13 more cities. On July 7th, new elections will take place in ten municipalities: Flores de Goiás and Nazário, in Goiás; Juara and Glória D'Oeste, in Mato Grosso; Brejo da Madre de Deus, in Pernambuco; São José do Ouro, in Rio Grande do Sul; and Figueirão, Jardim, Bela Vista, and Caracol, in Mato Grosso do Sul.

Currently, three new elections are scheduled for August 4th in the municipalities of Marituba, in Pará; Pedro Canário, in Espírito Santo; and Ponte Serrada, in Santa Catarina.

New elections entail additional expenses, and since last year, the Electoral Court, in partnership with the Attorney General's Office (AGU), has been charging ousted mayors for the expenses of holding new elections to choose the heads of the municipal executive branch.

Lawsuits have been filed to date regarding new claims made in 51 cities across 15 states. These lawsuits are currently underway in the Federal Courts. Lawsuits relating to another 37 municipalities are being finalized and will soon be filed by the Attorney General's Office (AGU) in the Federal Courts. Combined, these lawsuits seek to recover more than R$ 2,7 million in 88 cities across 20 states.

New elections may still be scheduled in several states across the country.