Brazil's Bolsonaro sees spike in presidential opinion polls after stabbing
Jair Bolsonaro, a far-right candidate in Brazil's presidential election, was stabbed during a rally last week in the city of Juiz de Fora. He is currently recovering from the attack and has seen a spike in his polling numbers since the assault.
An inflatable doll depicting Brazilian presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro in front of the Albert Einstein hospital in Sao Paulo, where he is recovering from the apparent assassination attempt. September 7, 2018.
Far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro has seen a spike in his lead in opinion polls during the run-up to the first round of Brazil's presidential election on October 7.
The spike comes after he was stabbed during a campaign rally last week. Bolsonaro nearly died in the apparent attempted assassination. He's currently recovering from emergency surgery and is expected to return to the presidential race.
Known for his racist and homophobic remarks, Bolsonaro's stabbing elicited public sympathy.
Bolsonaro leads in opinion polls ahead of the first-round vote. But he is not expected to win an outright majority, and surveys show he would likely lose in the October 28 runoff.
Earlier this week, the country's most popular politician, jailed former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Workers Party (PT), gave up hope of running after the top electoral court barred him because of his corruption conviction.
His running mate Fernando Haddad is now heading the PT ticket.
TRT World' Michael Fox reports from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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