2026 Rio Grande do Norte general election
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4 October 2026 (first round)
25 October 2026 (second round, if needed) | |
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The 2026 Rio Grande do Norte general election will be held on 4 October 2026 in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte as part of the 2026 general election. Voters will elect a Governor, a Vice Governor, two Senators, 8 representatives to the Chamber of Deputies, and 24 members of the Legislative Assembly of Rio Grande do Norte. If no candidate for governor receives a majority of the valid votes in the first round, a runoff will be held on 25 October 2026.[1][circular reference]
Incumbent governor Fátima Bezerra of the Workers' Party (PT), reelected in 2022, is term-limited and ineligible to run for a third consecutive term.[2] Incumbent senators Styvenson Valentim (PSDB) and Zenaide Maia (PSD) are completing their eight-year terms and are both eligible to seek reelection.[3]
Fátima Bezerra was first elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022, and under Brazilian electoral law she cannot run for a third consecutive term as governor. In early 2025, Vice Governor Walter Alves (MDB) announced that he would not seek the governorship, after which the PT-led state government rallied behind Finance Secretary Carlos Eduardo Xavier ("Cadu Xavier") as its candidate.[3]
On the opposition side, Senator Rogério Marinho (PL) withdrew his pre-candidacy for governor in late 2025 in order to coordinate the presidential campaign of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL), opening space for former Natal mayor Álvaro Dias (Republicanos) to consolidate support from the right and center-right.[3]
Electoral system
The governor and vice governor are elected on a joint ticket by a two-round system: a candidate who receives more than half of the valid votes in the first round is elected outright; otherwise, the top two candidates advance to a runoff. Senators are elected by simple plurality, with each voter casting votes for two candidates since two of the state's three Senate seats are up for election. Federal and state deputies are elected by open-list proportional representation.
Gubernatorial election
Candidates
- Allyson Bezerra (União Brasil) – mayor of Mossoró; backed by a coalition including União Brasil, Progressistas, PSD, MDB, and Solidariedade. His ticket features Senator Zenaide Maia as one of its Senate candidates.[3]
- Carlos Eduardo Xavier ("Cadu Xavier") (PT) – career tax auditor and state Secretary of Finance; standard-bearer of the Fátima Bezerra government's continuity project.[3]
- Álvaro Dias (Republicanos) – former mayor of Natal and former state and federal deputy; candidate of the right and center-right, with Senator Styvenson Valentim on the ticket for Senate reelection.[3]
Senate election
Two of Rio Grande do Norte's three Senate seats are up for election. Polling published in late 2025 and early 2026 showed incumbents Styvenson Valentim and Zenaide Maia leading intention-to-vote surveys, with Colonel Hélio (PL) and others trailing.[4]
Chamber of Deputies election
Eight seats in the federal Chamber of Deputies allocated to Rio Grande do Norte will be contested under open-list proportional representation.
