Businessman and presidential candidate Pablo Marçal won an appeal reversing an eight-year election ban at the Regional Electoral Court of São Paulo on Tuesday.
Judges on the plenary bench voted five to one to dismiss allegations of power abuse and improper social media use linked to his 2024 São Paulo mayoral campaign. The ruling remains subject to further appeal, and Marçal still faces two other ongoing legal actions related to the election.
The case was originally brought by the São Paulo directory of the Brazilian Socialist Party, which alleged ten separate illegal acts during Marçal's campaign for the Brazilian Labour Renewal Party. A first-instance electoral court had recognized only two violations: social media posts attacking opponents while questioning the impartiality of the judiciary and the electoral system, and a website allegedly encouraging supporters to print campaign materials while circumventing fundraising and spending rules.
Judicial ruling on freedom of expression
Judge Regis de Castilho, writing for the majority, concluded that Marçal's public comments did not pose a threat to the functioning of the Electoral Court. Castilho stated that the candidate was exercising his right to free expression and expressing dissatisfaction with judicial operations, noting that neither the Brazilian Federal Constitution nor the broader legal framework prevents public criticism of the judicial, legislative, or executive branches of government.
Desembargadores Roberto Maia and Mairan Maia Junior, alongside judges Cláudia Bedotti and Danyelle Galvão, voted with Castilho to form the five-judge majority. Regarding the campaign website, Castilho added that no unlawful act occurred because prosecutors failed to prove that voters actually engaged in producing propaganda materials in a manner that would constitute illegal activity or an abuse of economic power.
Judge Cláudio Langroiva, who served as rapporteur for the case, was the lone dissenter regarding Marçal's public statements. Langroiva argued that the businessman had crossed the line of protected speech by spreading false information and inciting hatred, though he agreed with the majority that the website itself did not violate electoral law.
Status of remaining electoral cases
Tuesday's decision marks the second time an appellate court has overturned an ineligibility sentence against Marçal. On November 6 last year, the court cleared him in a separate lawsuit filed by the Brazilian Socialist Party and former mayoral candidate Guilherme Boulos. That action investigated allegations that Marçal sold political endorsements to city council candidates in exchange for transfers via Pix, Brazil's instant payment network. The court rejected motions for clarification on February 4, and the case has moved to the Superior Electoral Court for special appeal analysis.
However, Marçal remains ineligible to hold public office under a December 4 decision by the same electoral court, which upheld an eight-year ban over improper social media use. That lawsuit centered on a video cuts contest organized for social networks during the 2024 campaign and included a 420,000 reais fine for failing to comply with court orders. The court rejected motions for clarification in that case on August 5, leaving an appeal to the Superior Electoral Court as his final legal recourse.
