International
The campaign for the municipal elections in Brazil leaves a trace of violence not yet clarified

The campaign for the municipal elections that Brazil celebrates this Sunday has left a trail of violence with the murder of up to fourteen candidates since the beginning of the year, although the political nature of those attacks is not yet fully clarified.
The data is contained in a report prepared by the Tierra de Derechos institute, a non-governmental organization that studies political violence in Brazil and that, during this year, identified 145 cases of attacks, threats and aggressions directly or indirectly associated with the electoral process.
Among them is the blow with a chair that the center-right candidate José Luiz Datena instold to the far-right Pablo Marçal in an electoral debate in São Paulo, which had a great media impact because it was the largest city in the country and the aggression was broadcast live on television.
But there is also the murder of Marcelo Oliveira, mayor of João Dias, who aspired to re-election in that municipality of 2,000 inhabitants in the interior of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, shot dead in the middle of the street with his father in August.
Oliveira was one of the fourteen candidates for mayor or councilor murdered since the beginning of this year for alleged political reasons, although the police authorities have not yet reached conclusions in any of those cases.
Corruption and organized crime add to violence
According to the Federal Police, the campaign has also left some 2,200 investigations open for suspected electoral crimes, which include attempts to “buy votes” and possible corruption cases, among many others.
The cases of violence have not been directly linked to the polarization that dominates the country between the progressivism embodied by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the far right led by his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro.
According to the authorities, they have been associated with local disputes, which are more acute in the small municipalities of the interior, where organized crime has more penetration.
Among the groups suspected of financing candidacies is the First Command of the Capital (PCC), which emerged three decades ago in the prisons of São Paulo and whose tentacles are now expanding throughout the national territory and reach some neighboring countries.
The numbers of the municipal elections in Brazil
The elections will be held in 5,569 cities, in which 500,183 tables are installed to elect the new mayors and members of the municipal assemblies.
The only one of the 27 regional capitals that will not go to the polls is Brasilia, which is part of the Federal District and has a differentiated administrative regime.
In the 103 municipalities with more than 200,000 voters, there will be a second round on October 27 if none of the mayoral candidates exceeds 50% of the support.
There will be a total of 155,912,680 voters, represented by 52% by women.
Throughout the country there are 15,452 candidates for mayor, but with minimal female participation, since there are 13,128 men and 2,324 women.
Gender disparity also appears in the candidates for councilors. There are 277,869 men and 150,773 women.
The largest polling stations are the cities of São Paulo, with 9.3 million voters, Rio de Janeiro (5,009,373) and Belo Horizonte (1,992,984).
To ensure peace of mind, all state security forces will be mobilized, as well as 23,000 members of the Armed Forces, who will also participate in the custody of the 571,024 electronic ballot boxes that voters will use.
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka

Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages

May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
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