Brazil: The well-known leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his main rival for the presidency of Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro, is expected to debate Sunday ahead of the October elections, after days of uncertainty about his participation.

Lula, who headed Brazil from 2003 to 2010, tweeted Saturday: "See you tomorrow in the band (broadcaster Rede Bandierantes)."

Bolsonaro has not formally confirmed his participation, but he is also expected to come, according to campaign officials cited by local media on Saturday.

"I once believed I shouldn't go, but now I believe I should... In an interview with Jovem Pan Radio on Friday, the far-right leader declared, "I think my strategy going to work.

The first debate is on the campaign schedule ahead of the election on October 2. Four additional candidates, including former Finance Minister Ciro Gomes and Senator Simone Tebate, have also been invited by the organisers.

As the race intensifies, Lula is ahead in the polls. The left-wing leader received 47% of Bolsonaro's 32% of the vote, according to one released by the Datafolha Institute earlier this month.

When Bolsonaro won the election in 2018, he participated in the first two presidential debates. However, after being stabbed during a campaign rally, he missed the following debates while recovering from surgery.

When running for re-election in 2006 and 1998 respectively, neither Lula nor another former Brazilian president, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, participated in the debate before the first round.

Both Bolsonaro and Lula released campaign ads before the debate focused primarily on the economy.

More than 33 million Brazilians suffer from hunger, and Lula criticized both of these issues.

In addition to promising to maintain a welfare program that sends money to 20 million families every month, Bolsonaro blamed the pandemic, the Ukraine conflict and drought for rising inflation.

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