Eduardo Riedel

His Excellency
Eduardo Riedel
His Excellency Eduardo Riedel
	Official portrait, 2023
11th Governor of Mato Grosso do Sul
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 1 January 2023
Vice Governor	José Carlos Barbosa
Preceded by	Reinaldo Azambuja
Vice-president of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 3 February 2023
Secretary of State for Infrastructure of Mato Grosso do Sul
	In office; 22 February 2021 – 2 April 2022
Governor	Reinaldo Azambuja
Preceded by	Luís Roberto Martins de Araújo (interim)
Succeeded by	Renato Marcílio da Silva
Secretary of State for Government and Strategic Management of Mato Grosso do Sul
	In office; 1 January 2015 – 23 February 2022
Governor	Reinaldo Azambuja
Preceded by	Carlos Roberto de Marchi
Succeeded by	Sérgio Murilo Mota
Personal details
Born	Eduardo Corrêa Riedel; 5 July 1969 (age 55); Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Political party	Brazilian Social Democracy Party
Spouse	Mônica Riedel (m. 1994)
Children	Marcela; Rafael;
Education	Federal University of Rio de Janeiro
Website	Official website

Eduardo Corrêa Riedel (born July 5, 1969) is a Brazilian politician who is the 12th and current Governor of Mato Grosso do Sul. A member of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party, he previously served as the 27th Secretary of State for Infrastructure and Housing in Mato Grosso do Sul from 2021 to 2022 under Government Reinaldo Azambuja and 20th Secretary of State for Government and Strategic Management of Mato Grosso do Sul from 2015 to 2021.^[1]^[2]

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 5, 1969, son of Seila Garcia Côrrea and Nelson Riedel, he graduated from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, the Getúlio Vargas Foundation and the European Institute of Business Administration.^[3] He was Secretary of State for Infrastructure of Mato Grosso do Sul from February 22, 2021 to April 2, 2022. Riedel was president of the Maracaju, Mato Grosso do Sul Union in 1999 and vice-president of the Federation of Agriculture and Livestock of Mato Grosso do Sul, and was also director of the National Confederation of Agriculture (CNA).^[4]

Between 2012 and 2014 he was president of Famasul, shortly after, he held the position of Secretary of State for Government and Strategic Management of Mato Grosso do Sul, during the government of Reinaldo Azambuja, a position in which he remained until 2021. In July 2021, he was appointed by Reinaldo Azambuja, as chairman of the Management Committee of the Economy Health and Safety Program (Proseguir).^[3] In 2022, he ran in the state elections in Mato Grosso do Sul as a candidate for governor with José Carlos Barbosa (also known as Barbosinha) as his running mate on his gubernatorial ticket.^[5]

Childhood and early career

Riedel was born in Rio de Janeiro on July 5, 1969, son of Seila Garcia Côrrea and Nelson Riedel.^[6]

In 1995, he took over the management of the family's rural property in Maracaju, gaining experience in management. Since then, he has taken on management-related positions.^[6]

President-director of Famasul (2012–2014)

In 2015, Riedel resigned from the position of president director of Famasul (2012–2014), taking over the head of the State Secretariat for Government and Strategic Management of Mato Grosso do Sul, in the government of Reinaldo Azambuja, a position in which he remained until 2021.^[6]^[7]

President of the Steering Committee of the Health and Safety Program for the Economy

During the COVID-19 pandemic, in 2020, the government of Mato Grosso do Sul, with the support of the Pan American Health Organization, created the Health and Safety Program in the Economy, which aimed to inform data and indicators to society, as well as developing more efficient actions to address the impacts of Covid-19 in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul.^[6] To coordinate and manage this project, Governor Reinaldo Azambuja appointed in July 2021, Riedel as president of the Steering Committee of the Health and Safety Program for the Economy.

Candidate for the government of Mato Grosso do Sul

In 2022, he ran in state elections in Mato Grosso do Sul as a candidate for governor, with José Carlos Barbosa (also known as Barbosinha) as his candidate for Vice governor. On October 2, 2022, during the first round of the election, he obtained 361,981 votes (25.16%) and was qualified to a second round with the candidate Renan Contar.^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11] On October 30, 2022 he defeated Contar after obtaining 808,210 votes (56.90%) and was elected as the governor of Mato Grosso do Sul, succeeding Reinaldo Azambuja.^[12]^[13]

Governor of Mato Grosso do Sul

Background

On December 6, 2022, Riedel had announced that some names would remain in his government's secretariat, names from the former Azambuja government.^[14]

On December 13, 2022, he officially announced the names of the state secretaries who will take office on January 1, 2023. Riedel's first echelon was already closed the week before the announcement.^[15]

Possession as Governor

His inauguration took place on January 1, 2023 at the Legislative Assembly of Mato Grosso do Sul. That same day, the elected President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva also took office, as well as the other governors of the States of Brazil.

Government

After the State Court of Auditors (TCE) suspended 16 contracts for the implementation and primary coating of 608 kilometers of highways in the Pantanal in july 2023, Riedel stated that the temporary suspension would not delay the conclusion of the works, and guaranteed that the Government of the State of Mato Grosso do Sul has nothing to hide.^[16]

Controversies

In a live broadcast on August 5, 2020, Riedel had taken a position against the judicial request made by the Public Defender's Office , for a lockdown to be determined in Campo Grande during the COVID-19 pandemic. The request, a public action, gave the city hall 72 hours to take a stand.^[3]

Riedel also highlighted in his speech that "the greatest enemy in the pandemic is the loss of common sense and the ability to dialogue and articulate direct and concrete actions, even if they do not converge", following up with a criticism of the Public Defender's Office.^[3]

"We do not believe in extreme and generalized judicialization as a solution tool. When we start to think that a magistrate's pen can provide the solution, covid-19 is taking a step forward in terms of the consequences for people's lives and the economy", he concluded.

At one point, the secretary adopted a confused speech by stating that the statement that the State Government defends the lockdown is a mistake, since there was only an orientation to paralyze only activities considered non-essential at the time.^[3]

During these years and especially during this period, Riedel implemented the “More Social” program , which serves more than 100,000 families in Mato Grosso do Sul, through a social card with the aid of R$300 per month. Riedel also helped with the implementation of the "CNH MS Social” which pays all the costs of the first driver's license for some citizens.^[3]

Among government actions are several established public-private partnerships, such as Infovia Digital, Sanesul, road paving and projects. Riedel also carried out the final stretch of the Pantanal Biopark works, which had its concept expandedm.^[3]