The front-runner and far-right candidate in Brazil’s upcoming presidential election Jair Bolsonaro has been stabbed and placed in intensive care only a month before the country’s votes. While he expected to recover fully in two months after one week in the hospital, the stabbing has escalated uncertainty and tension in the country. Bolsonaro is running as a “law and order” candidate in a country troubled by organized crime, and his signature pose is that of a “guns up” gesture connected to his support for police killings of suspected gang members. A number of local politicians in Brazil have fallen victim to violence, but national political figures have mostly been left out. Some have claimed that this attack will be a political boon to the candidate, who may see his support rise in the aftermath.
Source: Brazil presidential election plunged into chaos after front-runner stabbed | Reuters