Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his main challenger, Flávio Bolsonaro, have withdrawn from the final presidential debate ahead of Sunday’s first-round election.
The debate, organised by TV Globo, was cancelled after rulings by Brazil’s electoral court and Supreme Court created what the broadcaster described as “legal uncertainty” over whether the event could proceed.
Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, said he pulled out because of what he described as “censorship imposed by the electoral court.” The dispute followed a ruling preventing the broadcaster from leaving Lula’s seat empty on stage if he did not attend.
Lula instead appeared on a popular podcast with millions of YouTube subscribers.
The cancellation came as opinion polls showed Lula with a narrow lead ahead of Sunday’s vote, while the two leading candidates were closely matched in projections for a possible second-round election on October 25.
Bomb Scare at Supreme Court
On the same day, Brazilian authorities investigated a suspected bomb threat outside the Supreme Court in Brasília.
Police arrested a man accused of attempting to jump the court’s fences and throwing a backpack onto a bus stop. Authorities examined the backpack and found only personal belongings, ruling out the presence of a bomb.
The suspect remained in custody as investigations continued.
Brazil’s Supreme Court has faced strong criticism from sections of the political right, particularly following the 2025 conviction of former President Jair Bolsonaro over a coup plot. The court has also been drawn into a fraud scandal that has become a major issue during the final stages of the presidential campaign.
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