Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s election campaign has accused Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, of allegedly restricting the reach of his social media content ahead of the country’s presidential runoff scheduled for October 25.
Lula, who is seeking a fourth non-consecutive presidential term, is set to face Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, son of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro, in the second round of voting.
In a statement, Lula’s campaign alleged that Meta had limited the distribution of content published on the president’s official accounts, raising concerns about potential interference in the electoral process.
The campaign claimed that Meta had recently prevented Lula’s Instagram profile from promoting posts on the platform’s feed. It also reported an interruption in the view counts of a video published through his official account, which allegedly affected the content’s reach.
According to the statement, the Instagram profiles of Lula and other left-wing political leaders also disappeared unexpectedly from the platform’s search results ahead of the first round of voting last Sunday, in which Flavio Bolsonaro secured the highest vote count.
The campaign said the reported technical irregularities raised suspicions that Meta’s actions could have influenced the election in favour of Bolsonaro’s candidacy. It subsequently lodged a complaint with Brazil’s electoral court over the alleged restrictions.
Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court (TSE) has ordered Meta to explain the reported irregularities within 48 hours.
The court directed the company to provide details of any measures applied to Lula’s official social media accounts and clarify anomalies in the viewing figures of his videos.
The order requires Meta to submit an account-by-account report outlining any restrictions or other actions taken against the campaign’s profiles.
Meta’s Brazilian office rejected the accusations, describing them as false and unsupported by evidence.
In a statement to AFP, the company said several of the technical problems cited by Lula’s campaign were not limited to Brazil or specific accounts.
Meta also maintained that it complies with electoral regulations and is committed to ensuring fair treatment of political participants using its platforms.
The dispute comes as Lula’s campaign intensifies its online outreach following the first round of voting. Lula, who does not use a mobile phone, has launched a social media drive featuring videos in which he directly addresses his online supporters.
The allegations have added to scrutiny of the role played by major technology platforms in political campaigning, content distribution and electoral fairness.
