Brazil’s Municipal Elections 2020: 2nd round to be held in 57 cities
In Brazil’s municipal elections this year, a second round will be held in 57 cities, of which 18 are capitals—among them are Brazil’s two largest cities: Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. In these locations, electoral campaigns may resume today (Nov. 16).
The second round is slated to take place on November 29, 13 days after the first vote—the shortest interval in history. The gap takes usually three to four weeks. The tight schedule was approved by Congress as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The face-off will be disputed by the two best-performing candidates in each of these 57 cities, as none of them managed to garner an absolute majority (50 percent plus one) of valid ballots in the first round—blank and null votes, as well as abstentions, were not taken into account.
The second round was possible in the 95 Brazilian cities with more than 200 thousand people. Of these, 35 decided their winners in the first round, as they had a candidate that received more than half of valid ballots.
The need for a second vote in the mayoral race in cities with 200 thousand inhabitants or more is stipulated by the Constitution and follows the same model adopted in the presidential and gubernatorial elections.
