Lula, Bolsonaro reach out to undecided voters in last debate of Brazil's presidential race

SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro faced off Friday in their second and final debate ahead of Sunday's presidential runoff election, but this time with cooler heads than a few days ago as they tried to reach out to the few undecided voters left in the tight race.

The debate on TV Globo, Brazil's most popular broadcaster, lasted two hours and offered candidates a chance to talk about their plans in front of each other. Five days ago, the two exchanged barbs and accusations in a debate on TV Band.

Friday's debate in Rio de Janeiro had three tense moments.

Flávio Bolsonaro, the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, called Lula “nine fingers,” a pejorative nickname used by many of his supporters which references an accident the Brazilian president suffered during his time as a metal worker. The 80-year-old leader demanded an apology, which Bolsonaro gave him.

“He will have to apologize. Because the working people are watching. Millions of workers suffer accidents due to employer irresponsibility. (They are) being forced to work shifts that we shouldn’t have to work,” said Lula. “I was underage and I worked at night (when the accident happened).”

The 45-year-old Bolsonaro replied: “Lula, if I offended you by calling you ‘nine-fingers,’ I truly apologize. I didn’t mean to offend you."

The second was when Lula, in response, called Flávio Bolsonaro a vigilante, in a reference to groups linked to policemen that are operating in poor communities in Rio de Janeiro. Bolsonaro said he would rename those groups, called militias, as narcoterrorists.

“I will not allow a vigilante to call me nine fingers,” Lula said. Bolsonaro was awarded more time by mediators to respond to the insult. But instead of answering the president's accusation, he chose to talk about a different subject.

The third tense exchange was between Flávio Bolsonaro and the mother of a 5-year-old girl who was killed in a shootout that involved a policeman who had the presidential candidate as his lawyer. Bolsonaro said he doesn't believe his client was guilty.

“I am confident that it was not this police officer who fired that shot,” Bolsonaro said.

The child's mother, who was brought by Lula's campaign to the TV Globo studios, yelled from the stands in response: “She is dead.”

Lula and Bolsonaro discussed the value of the minimum wage, public security policies, Brazil's free healthcare system initiatives and incentives for agribusiness.

On Saturday, both are expected to take tens of thousands of supporters to the streets of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo in their last effort before the runoff.

Flávio Bolsonaro won the first round of voting in the presidential election by 47% to 45%, and recent polls suggest he and Lula, who is seeking his fourth nonconsecutive term, are in a very close race.

The winner will be in charge of Latin America’s biggest economy and a population of 214 million. A win for Bolsonaro would increase U.S. influence in Latin America, as he is an ally of U.S. President Donald Trump. If Lula wins, Brazil will keep its distance from Washington and continue to deepen its relationship with China.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Women watch Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is seeking reelection, speak during a televised presidential debate days before the presidential runoff election in Sao Paulo, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Supporters of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is seeking reelection, shout slogans before a televised presidential debate between Lula and his rival, Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro, days before the presidential runoff election in Sao Paulo, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is running for reelection, gestures during a televised presidential debate days before the presidential runoff election in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

Opposition presidential candidate Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro takes part in a televised presidential debate days before the presidential runoff election in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, right, who is running for reelection, and opposition presidential candidate Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro attend a televised presidential debate days before the presidential runoff election in Rio de Janeiro, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

BERLIN (AP) — A fire swept through the mountaintop retreat built for Adolf Hitler and known as the Eagle's Nest as emergency services struggled to tackle the blaze in snow and wind, and a man was arrested on suspicion of arson, authorities said Saturday.

Emergency services in the Berchtesgaden district, in the Bavarian Alps in Germany's southeastern corner, were alerted to the fire by an alarm at about 9:15 p.m. Friday. Firefighters and police rushed to the scene — located at the end of a narrow road that winds up the mountain, in part through a series of tunnels — and could see the flames as they approached.

They stopped and arrested a man on a motorcycle driving the other way down the road.

Prosecutors said the 33-year-old suspect, a German citizen who has ties to the Berchtesgaden area but doesn't currently live there, was questioned. They said he showed signs of mental illness and he was being set to a psychiatric facility, but they also would look into the possibility of a political motive in view of the building's history. Police said there were no current indications that anyone else was involved.

Rain that turned into the year's first snow, accompanied by strong wind, complicated the already difficult task of tackling the blaze and firefighters had to pull out overnight after several hours, officials said. No one was injured in the fire, and firefighters hoped to finish their work on Saturday though they weren't able to enter the building because of a danger of falling material.

The building, known in German as the Kehlsteinhaus, is located on a cliff 1,834 meters (6,017 feet) above sea level. It is reachable by an elevator built inside the rock from the end of the mountain road, which is closed to public traffic but used during the day by buses for visitors.

It has been operated as a cafe and restaurant since 1952 and contains an exhibition on its history. The Nazi dictator himself rarely used the Kehlsteinhaus — unlike the Berghof residence, also in the Berchtesgaden area, the ruins of which were blown up in 1952.

The Obersalzberg Documentation Center, further down the mountain, is home to the area's main historical exhibition and was unaffected by the fire.

Officials indicated that the Eagle's Nest would be restored, though they were vague so soon after the blaze about how exactly that would be done.

“We're not going to leave a ruin there,” Bavaria's interior minister, Joachim Herrmann, told reporters in Berchtesgaden. But what the site will look like in the future will be a matter for discussions with local officials, historians, preservationists and others.

“I think we will be able to find a sensible solution,” Herrmann added. Bavaria's state government owns the building.

The minister stressed that “it is important that we continue to do the work of remembrance.”

The Kehlsteinhaus on the Obersalzberg near Berchtesgaden, which was severely damaged by a fire, Saturday, Oct.24, 2026. ( Jason Tschepljakow/dpa via AP)

The Kehlsteinhaus on the Obersalzberg near Berchtesgaden, which was severely damaged by a fire, Saturday, Oct.24, 2026. ( Jason Tschepljakow/dpa via AP)

This July 26, 2007 photo shows the Kehlsteinhaus, or Eagle's Nest, built for Adolf Hitler in 1938 near Berchtesgaden, Germany. (AP Photo/Geir Moulson)