Montes Claros City councilwoman Iara Pimentel was injured by a projectile at a campaign event<\/p>\n
A politician from Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva\u2019s party was injured when attackers threw stones and bottles at a campaign vehicle on the eve of Sunday\u2019s crucial presidential runoff.
\nThe violent incident came as Brazilians voted in a tightly contested election between left-wing incumbent Lula, who has championed closer ties with BRICS nations, and right-wing challenger and Donald Trump ally Flavio Bolsonaro.
\nMontes Claros City councilwoman Iara Pimentel, a member of Lula\u2019s Workers\u2019 Party (PT), was struck in the face during a campaign event late Saturday night in Minas Gerais state in southeastern Brazil, according to state news agency Agencia Brasil (ABr).
\nVideo footage showed bottles, bricks, and other objects being thrown at the campaign vehicle carrying the politician. Later images showed her bloodied face.<\/p>\n
Ajudem essas imagens a chegar \u00e0 policia! N\u00e3o podemos permitir que esse tipo de gente, que estimula o \u00f3dio, governo o pa\u00eds! https:\/\/t.co\/51eU79KCLR\u2014 Jorge Solla (@depjorgesolla) October 25, 2026<\/p>\n
She was taken to a local hospital by ambulance, ABr reported.
\n\u201cThinking differently is a right. Political violence is a threat to democracy. No disagreement can justify acts of aggression or put lives at risk,\u201d Pimentel said in a statement cited by the agency.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Brazil picks its path: What\u2019s at stake in the election<\/p>\n
Ana Elisa, a 21-year-old congresswoman-elect from Lula\u2019s Workers\u2019 Party representing Minas Gerais, condemned the attack and called for those responsible to be held accountable.
\nLula also condemned what he described as multiple incidents of violence during the election.
\n\u201cThe most sacred thing in democracy is democratic coexistence in diversity,\u201d he said, according to ABr, arguing that neighbors should be able to support different political candidates and sports teams or hold different beliefs without resorting to violence.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Facebook meddling in Brazilian election \u2013 Lula campaign<\/p>\n
The assault occurred just hours before polls opened on Sunday and weeks after the close of the first round of Brazil\u2019s presidential election on October 4. Lula received just over 45%, while 47% went to Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro \u2013 who is serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup following his 2022 election defeat. Trump has described the former president\u2019s prosecution as a \u201cwitch hunt.\u201d
\nThe election has also been marred by allegations of interference by US tech giant Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Meta blocked the Facebook advertising account used by Lula\u2019s team ahead of the first round on October 4, then prevented his official Instagram account from boosting posts days later, according to campaign officials.
\nMeta denied politically interfering in the election, but internal company messages acknowledged technical restrictions affecting Lula\u2019s Instagram account, Folha de S.Paulo newspaper reported last week, citing internal communications.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Montes Claros City councilwoman Iara Pimentel was injured by a projectile at a campaign event A politician from Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva\u2019s party was injured when attackers…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40503,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t