Who is Cláudio Castro?
Cláudio Castro, a lawyer born in 1979, was elected councillor of Rio in 2016 and vice-governor on Wilson Witzel's ticket in 2018. He took over after the Superior Court of Justice removed Witzel in 2020 and became full governor on 1 May 2021, when Witzel was impeached. In May 2021 he joined the PL with Jair Bolsonaro present and was re-elected in 2022. On 23 March 2026 he resigned, a day before the Electoral Court was to judge cases that could have removed him, saying he would run for the Senate. He withdrew that bid on 28 May 2026 after new Federal Police operations.
Previously: Governor of Rio de Janeiro (acting from 2020, full term from 1 May 2021, re-elected in 2022) · Vice-governor of Rio de Janeiro (elected 2018) · City councillor of Rio de Janeiro (elected 2016)
Documented positions
- In April 2021 his government auctioned three of four Cedae water and sewage blocks for about R$22.7 billion, and he said the sale proved the state was doing its homework.Source: infomoney.com.br
- As reported in November 2025, he made public security his first priority and cited over R$4.5 billion invested in police equipment, vehicles and pay.Source: gazetadopovo.com.br
- He has lobbied the United States to classify the Comando Vermelho gang as a terrorist organisation, according to the same report.Source: gazetadopovo.com.br
- After the 28 October 2025 police operation in the Alemão and Penha complexes he called it a success and said the only victims were the four police officers killed.Source: istoedinheiro.com.br
- He gave an official toll of 58 dead and said it would change; a day later one outlet reported a count of 119, and Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered him to answer 18 questions about the operation.Source: conexaoto.com.br
- He moved from the PSC to the PL in May 2021 with Jair Bolsonaro present.Source: cnnbrasil.com.br
- He resigned the governorship on 23 March 2026 and confirmed a Senate pre-candidacy, then gave it up in late May.Source: itatiaia.com.br
Record
Castro's tenure combined the largest sanitation concession in Brazil with a security policy built on large police operations. The October 2025 Contenção operation killed more than 100 people by the counts then reported; human rights groups called it a massacre, relatives described signs of execution and the Supreme Court demanded explanations. No outcome of that review was found.
The Electoral Court convicted him of abuse of political and economic power in the 2022 campaign, over using the state foundation Ceperj and the university UFRJ to hire temporary staff who acted as campaigners, and made him ineligible until 2030. It rejected the prosecutor's appeal 5 to 2 on 2 June 2026, and his resignation spared him loss of his diploma. On 15 May and 26 May 2026 the Federal Police searched him in inquiries about a fuel group and about R$3 billion of the state pension fund Rioprevidência placed in Banco Master products. The reports do not say he has been charged.
Supporters credit him with expanding police funding and confronting organised crime. Critics charge that the operations were lethal and that he misused public bodies in the 2022 campaign.
