Brazil's presidential race will go to a second round after far-right candidate Flávio Bolsonaro beat incumbent leftwing president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva but failed to secure the outright majority needed to avoid a runoff. The 45-year-old son of the disgraced former president Jair Bolsonaro will enter the second round as strong favourite, likely to pick up votes from other rightwing candidates, including Ronaldo Caiado, who secured 2.1%, and Renan Santos, who won 2.2%. The second round will take place on 25 October.
Bolsonarista gains in congressional and gubernatorial races
Brazil's far right put in an even stronger than expected showing, with a succession of Bolsonarista politicians winning congressional or gubernatorial races. They included Jair Bolsonaro's second son, Carlos Bolsonaro, and his wife, Michelle Bolsonaro, who both won seats in the senate. Bolsonaro's youngest son, Jair Renan Bolsonaro, was elected to the lower house of congress.
Cornell rape case threats and White House appointment
The woman who has alleged she was drugged and raped by Cornell University students has been the target of threats, her lawyer said. Thomas Giuffra told CNN that people had threatened to silence or harm her if she did not withdraw her civil lawsuit alleging that several members of a Cornell fraternity had drugged and raped her in 2024. Giuffra said he had also been threatened. “I’m not afraid of these people,” he said. “But the threats, the abuse to protect what’s going on, the status quo – these guys are disgusting. They should stay in their mother’s basement and stay out of the world.”
In a video message, the Cornell University president, Michael Kotlikoff, said the school would take “a serious look at the role of fraternities and sororities in campus life”, adding: “At their best, these organisations can provide students with friendship, belonging, mentorship and a powerful sense of community. But being part of a group can never diminish individual responsibility.”
The White House deputy press secretary, Anna Kelly, defended the appointment of new press aide Beni Rae Harmony, who posed for a holiday photograph in 2021 wearing a “Fuck Joe Biden” T-shirt and holding a rifle. Kelly said: “Beni Rae Harmony has been a trusted voice for the Maga movement as a White House correspondent. She will be an outstanding addition to President Trump’s communications team as an assistant press secretary – we look forward to having her onboard!”
US bombers leave UK base; Middle East and other news
The US air force has pulled its bombers from RAF Fairford in England following an investigation into an alleged planned terrorist attack at the base. At least 10 B-1 bombers out of 12 flew out of the base on Sunday, including some that arrived on rotation less than a week ago. Five British nationals were initially detained on suspicion of explosives offences and terrorism last weekend after three vans were found near the base. They were later released on bail.
Yemen’s Saudi-backed government has announced the start of a new military operation to retake all territory held by the Houthis. The statement came just hours after the Houthis cut a vital supply route linking the besieged city of Taiz with the government’s interim capital, Aden.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor has launched legal action against British police over their raids on his property in connection with the Epstein files. Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has announced a snap general election three days after rightwing parties torpedoed the emergency legislation his minority government had put forward in response to public anger over the housing crisis. A US marine stationed on Okinawa is accused of murdering a Japanese woman and has been arrested. Donald Trump has named Jay Clayton, the director of national intelligence, to also serve as the new White House AI czar, leading what Trump called “the Super Intelligence Force (SIF)”. More than 400 schools in France will be closed or partly closed on Monday as authorities brace for another week of student protests; a minister said 24 schools had been burnt or ransacked and 78 education staff members injured.
Box office flop and weather warnings
Tom Cruise’s appearance in Alejandro G Iñárritu’s critically panned satire Digger took just $20m globally in its opening weekend, against a reported $150m production budget and $100m marketing spend. The National Weather Service in the US has issued extreme heat warnings for parts of southern California, including Los Angeles, until Thursday. Burbank recorded 102F on Saturday, a few degrees shy of the October record for the region set in 1987.
Mexico debuted its tiniest national guard recruit – Comando the chihuahua. The 13-month-old pup stands just 8in tall and is being trained not just as a crowd-pleasing mascot but for search-and-rescue work as well.
