EDITORIAL – An answer for Roraima

By Márcia Guimarães – From Cenarium

Roraima has been experiencing a sui generis situation. It is a state governed by a governor who has already been removed from office four times and remains in power because legislation allows him to stay while awaiting the judgment of appeals. The governor in question is Antonio Denarium (PP), who has been the target of rulings by the Regional Electoral Court of Roraima (TRE-RR) for abuse of political and economic power, using government funds and resources to secure his re-election, which he achieved in 2022. The fate of Denarium, and of Roraima, thus depends on the decisions regarding these appeals, which, whether upheld or denied, must provide the state with an answer and some degree of stability. The delay in ruling on these appeals generates legal, political, and administrative insecurity, institutional instability, and may lead the state’s population to lose trust in the Electoral Court.

Denarium’s administration has been marked by scandals of mismanagement, investigations of fund misuse, corruption allegations, arrests of government officials and family members, incompetence in handling Indigenous affairs, and precarious public services. This highly unfavorable scenario led to his inclusion among the worst governors in the country, according to the Atlas Ranking Governadores survey from August 2024. Roraima also stands out negatively with the municipality of Uiramutã being ranked as the worst in the country in quality of life, according to the 2025 Social Progress Index (IPS) from the Institute of Man and the Environment of the Amazon (Imazon). This top spot in the negative ranking is yet another reflection of Denarium’s administration, which, despite the annulments, could still complete his term.

In one of the proceedings that led to Denarium’s annulment, an appeal has been stalled in the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) for ten months. The appeal reached the stage of being judged in a session that was suspended, returned to the docket in the following session, which was canceled, and by the time this edition closed, it had not returned to deliberation, with its inclusion depending on a decision by the Court’s presidency. The situation places the future of Roraima’s government in the hands of Justice Cármen Lúcia, the president of the Court.

The Electoral Court’s delay in delivering a definitive answer to the people of Roraima, and Denarium’s trajectory as governor, are the themes of the cover story of our 60th edition. As the setting of complex challenges, the state is in dire need of stability in its governance, tranquility that hinges on a decision from the TSE.

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Reviewed by Jesua Maia
Translated from Portuguese by Gustô Alves