Brazilian mayoral debate turns ugly as candidate attacks speaker with chair on live TV

Wild footage has emerged of a candidate for mayor physically attacking his challenger with a chair during a televised debate.

A candidate for mayor of the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo has physically attacked his challenger with a chair during a televised debate.

Pablo Marçal, 37, was delivering his spiel when Jose Luiz Datena suddenly appeared from the shadows, brandishing the chair and beating him with it.

The broadcast panned to the debate mediator, who stood in shock, before the footage went blank.

Astonishingly, it’s understood the debate continued.

A candidate for mayor of Sao Paulo has physically attacked his challenger with a chair during a televised debate.

Pablo Marçal, 37, was delivering his spiel when Jose Luiz Datena suddenly appeared from the shadows.

The broadcast panned to the debate mediator, who stood in shock, before the footage went blank.

Marçal, the PRTB candidate for mayor of São Paulo, runs on a platform of decentralising city governance by increasing the number of sub-municipalities from 32 to 96.

Marçal is expected to spend the night under observation at Hospital Sírio Libanês. Since then, photos have emerged of the mayoral candidate gesturing to the camera from his hospital bed.

Marçal’s official Instagram after the incident lambasted what had occurred.

Photos have since emerged of the mayoral candidate gesturing to the camera from his hospital bed.

“On this occasion, Pablo Marçal was cowardly assaulted by José Luiz Datena, who struck him in the rib area with a metal chair,” The post, translated from Portuguese, read.

“Unfortunately, Marçal had to leave the debate in a hurry, in an ambulance, to receive emergency medical care.

“It is regrettable that the debate continued, even without the presence of the attacked candidate. “Pablo Marçal is injured, with suspected fractures in the chest area and severe difficulty breathing. We hope that the appropriate legal measures will be taken and count on the people’s prayers.”

In the hours after, the account also made a bizarre attempt to liken the incident to the July 13 assassination attempt on former US president Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Originally published as Brazilian mayoral debate turns ugly as candidate attacks speaker with chair on live TV