Bolsonaro to launch campaign in city where he was stabbed

Jair Bolsonaro during a 2018 rally in Juiz de Fora, moments before being stabbed. Photo: Antonio Scorza/Shutterstock

President Jair Bolsonaro will officially launch his presidential campaign on Tuesday in the city of Juiz de Fora, where he was stabbed almost four years ago.

Bruno Engler, a staunchly pro-Bolsonaro state lawmaker in Minas Gerais, said the president would arrive at the city’s airport on Tuesday morning. From there, Mr. Bolsonaro and his supporters will hold a motorbike parade — these so-called ‘motociatas’ have become a staple of the president’s campaigning.

In 2018, while campaigning for president in Juiz de Fora, Mr. Bolsonaro was stabbed in the abdomen by Adélio Bispo. Two Federal Police investigations concluded the assailant acted alone. However, on several occasions since the attack, Mr. Bolsonaro and his supporters circulated conspiracy theories about Mr. Bispo having allegedly acted on behalf of opposing political parties.

Mr. Bispo was arrested immediately after the attack and has been in jail since.

Mr. Engler added that President Bolsonaro will make his speech in the exact same place where has stabbed, in downtown Juiz de Fora.

The attempted homicide has since featured in several of Mr. Bolsonaro’s speeches, which he regularly starts by thanking God that he is still alive. According to Mr. Engler, President Bolsonaro’s campaign will kick off at the spot “he was born again.”