AbstractMolecular electrocatalysts for CO₂‐to‐CO conversion often operate at large overpotentials, due to the large barrier for C−O bond cleavage. Illustrated with ruthenium polypyridyl catalysts, we herein propose a mechanistic route that involves one metal center that acts as both Lewis base and Lewis acid at different stages of the catalytic cycle, by density functional theory in corroboration with experimental FTIR. The nucleophilic character of the Ru center manifests itself in the initial attack on CO₂to form [Ru‐CO₂]⁰, while its electrophilic character allows for the formation of a 5‐membered metallacyclic intermediate, [Ru‐CO₂CO₂]^0,c, by addition of a second CO₂molecule and intramolecular cyclization. The calculated activation barrier for C−O bond cleavage via the metallacycle is decreased by 34.9 kcal mol⁻¹as compared to the non‐cyclic adduct in the two electron reduced state of complex1. Such metallacyclic intermediates in electrocatalytic CO₂reduction offer a new design feature that can be implemented consciously in future catalyst designs.