A televised mayoral debate in became heated on Sunday night when one candidate attacked another with a metal chair.

The Associated Press reported that Pablo Marcal, a personal development influencer turned right-wing politician, made allegations against his opponent, José Luiz Datena, a former TV presenter turned candidate, during the debate.

Marcal claimed Datena wanted to slap him, stating, “You’re not even man enough to do this.”

Datena was then seen on live video walking towards Marcal’s podium, holding a metal chair above his head, and striking Marcal’s side as he raised his arms.

Immediately after the attack, the TV Cultura debate moderator interrupted the event and went to commercial break. The debate resumed later that night without Marcal.

Instead of continuing the debate, Marcal was taken to the hospital by ambulance, where he reportedly received respiratory support.

On Monday, he informed his followers that he experienced pain while breathing and sustained a fracture on the bottom of his rib cage.

Hospital officials stated in a statement that Marcal suffered “trauma to the right chest region and right wrist without major associated complications,” adding that he had been discharged.

Marcal referred to the incident as an “attempted homicide” on social media, even drawing comparisons to the attempted assassination of former President Trump in July and the stabbing of former in 2018.

An inquiry into Datena’s alleged misconduct never resulted in charges, according to the Associated Press, and the matter was dropped after the accuser retracted her statements.

Datena has also denied the accusations.

Following the debate, Datena told reporters the episode had been painful for him because he believes it prompted his mother-in-law to suffer a series of strokes and subsequently pass away.

On Monday, Datena acknowledged making a mistake during the debate, though he expressed no regrets.

“If the circumstances were the same, I would not refrain from repeating the gesture, an extreme response to a history of aggression perpetrated against me and many others by my adversary,” he stated.

said the debate should not have continued without him, adding that they hope legal action is taken against Datena.

On Sunday night, the incident was recorded with Sao Paulo’s public security agency as “bodily injury and insult.” An investigation into the matter is ongoing.