Brazil's electoral court opened a new probe into Meta and X on October 22, giving both 24 hours to explain whether their systems treated Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro unequally. The order from corregedor Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva carries a R$500,000 daily fine for each company.
Electoral prosecutors said a day earlier that Meta had not fully met an earlier equal-treatment order, and TSE president Kassio Nunes Marques gave the company 24 hours to report on a pro-Lula channel. Lula's coalition also asked the court to disqualify Bolsonaro over alleged platform favoritism; the runoff was scheduled for October 25. The court has not publicly ruled on whether Meta complied with the October 19 order or the new demands.
Why it matters
Brazil's election court is testing whether it can force Meta to give rival campaigns equal reach, with daily fines on the line.
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Key Indicators
R$1M
Daily fine in equal-treatment case
Justice Marco Aurélio Bellizze doubled the daily fine from 500,000 to 1 million reais on October 19. The court has not lifted it.
24h
Deadline in new Meta and X probe
Corregedor Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva gave both platforms 24 hours on October 22 to explain possible unequal treatment, with a R$500,000 daily fine for each.
17
Measures Meta listed in compliance filing
Meta's nine-page response to the TSE listed 17 initiatives, including prior human review of both campaigns' ad accounts and a technical declaration that content is treated equally.
1,204
AI-labeled posts Meta says it audited
Meta told the TSE it audited 1,204 reported posts; 720 were removed or made unavailable for missing mandatory AI labels.
21 events
Latest: October 22nd, 2026 · 3 weeks ago
Showing 8 of 21
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October 2026
TSE corregedor gives Meta and X 24 hours to explain unequal treatment
LatestLegal
Corregedor Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva gave Meta and X 24 hours to detail AI use, political content distribution, electoral ads and removals, with a R$500,000 daily fine for noncompliance. He also ordered human review of a removed video from the series Revelando.
Nunes Marques orders Meta report on 'Exército de Lula' channel
Legal
TSE president Kassio Nunes Marques gave Meta 24 hours to provide technical data on the pro-Lula channel 'Exército de Lula,' including coordinated activity, reach and paid promotion. The request came from Flávio Bolsonaro's campaign.
Meta denies favoritism after court deadline
Statement
Meta said it had completed the measures ordered by Brazil's electoral court and treated Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro equally, denying any favoritism.
Lula coalition asks TSE to disqualify Bolsonaro over platform favoritism
Legal
The coalition Brasil Pronto pra Mais filed an electoral judicial investigation action against Flávio Bolsonaro and running mate Alfredo Gaspar de Mendonça Neto. It alleges abuse of economic power and misuse of media, citing favoritism by Meta and X and restrictions on Lula's content.
Electoral prosecutors say Meta fell short of TSE order
Legal
The MP Eleitoral told the TSE that Meta missed parts of the October 15 equal-treatment order, including reports on suspended ads and Meta AI refusals. It recommended a R$500,000 daily fine while violations persist.
Meta files nine-page compliance report with TSE
Legal
Meta told the court it had adopted 17 measures to treat both campaigns equally, including prior human review of campaign ad accounts and review within two hours of any automated restriction, and attached a technical declaration. It also said it would limit political ads to candidates and parties registered with the TSE.
Court gives Meta 24 hours and doubles daily fine
Legal
Justice Marco Aurélio Bellizze gave Meta 24 hours to prove equal treatment of Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro and raised the daily fine for non-compliance from 500,000 to 1 million reais.
Lula campaign files new complaint accusing Meta of favoring Bolsonaro
Legal
Lula's campaign asked the Superior Electoral Court to act again, saying Meta continued to favor Flávio Bolsonaro on its platforms.
Meta tells TSE it adopted human review and requests urgent meeting
Legal
Meta said it would require human review within two hours for any automated suspension of presidential campaign ad accounts, announced a whitelist limiting political ads to registered candidates and parties, and asked the court for an urgent working meeting. It denied bias and asked not to be fined.
Folha reports Meta employees acknowledged restrictions on Lula's accounts
Investigation
Folha de S. Paulo reported internal Meta messages in which employees acknowledged Lula's Instagram accounts were affected by restrictions, and that the platform recommended Bolsonaro's profile and WhatsApp channel.
Meta denies political bias in Brazil campaign
Statement
Meta said the issues cited by Lula's campaign stemmed from global technical glitches, anti-fraud measures and regulatory compliance, not political bias. It cited two technical disruptions in October affecting Instagram Reels view counts and ad creation.
Full electoral court upholds Meta equal-treatment order
Legal
The Superior Electoral Court upheld Bellizze's order unanimously, keeping the 500,000 reais daily fine in place through the runoff.
Electoral court orders Meta to treat Lula and Bolsonaro equally
Legal
Justice Marco Aurélio Bellizze ordered Meta to give Lula and Flávio Bolsonaro equal treatment through the October 25 runoff, with a daily fine of 500,000 reais for non-compliance.
Ekō research shows Meta profiting from shadow accounts pushing disinformation
Investigation
The accountability group identified 26 ad accounts that spent $223,000 (R$1.1 million) on Meta ads, many not authorized to run electoral ads. The ads included AI deepfakes and attacks on Brazil's electoral court.
UFRJ study finds 1,613 irregular political ads on Meta
Investigation
A study from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro found Meta allowed 1,613 irregular political ads, totaling 171 million views and about 2 million reais ($400,000) in revenue between July and September, funded mainly from the United States.
September 2026
PT keeps court threat open as Meta remains silent
Statement
The Workers' Party maintains its threat to file with the Superior Electoral Court as Meta has not explained the restriction's cause.
PT sends formal complaint to Meta demanding answers
Legal
The Workers' Party demanded restoration within six hours, human review by compliance analysts, and preservation of evidence, threatening court action.
Meta disables Lula's Facebook page and campaign ad account
Platform Action
Eleven days before the first-round vote, Meta disabled Lula's Facebook page and restricted his campaign's ad account, offering no justification.
Campaign appeals; Meta restores page same day
Platform Action
The campaign filed an appeal and the ad account was restored the same day, but Meta gave no explanation for the restriction.
Eko Movement test finds 87% of disinformation ads approved
Investigation
Eko Movement's test showed Meta approved 13 of 15 AI ads, including execution-style threats against lawmakers and coup language.
August 2026
Amnesty International reveals Meta failed most disinformation tests
Investigation
Amnesty revealed Meta approved most of the 14 AI-generated political disinformation ads about Brazil's elections it submitted to test compliance.
Scenarios
1
Workers' Party files complaint with Brazil's Superior Electoral Court
Deadline passed (Oct 4, 2026)
Discussed by: Éden Valadares, PT national communications secretary; PT campaign legal team
The Workers' Party follows through on its threat and files a formal complaint with the TSE. The petition argues that a unilateral, unexplained suspension of a presidential candidate's ad account violates electoral-law guarantees of parity among campaigns. The court could order Meta to explain the restriction and set rules for platform behavior during election periods.
2
Meta provides formal explanation; episode closes without court action
Deadline passed (Oct 4, 2026)
Discussed by: The campaign's formal appeal to Meta
Meta responds to the campaign's appeal with a formal explanation of what triggered the restriction, whether an automated flag, a user report, or a compliance review. If the explanation holds up and the campaign accepts it, the episode ends without litigation.
3
Episode becomes campaign talking point with no formal resolution before vote
Deadline passed (Oct 4, 2026)
Discussed by: PT public statements; Brazilian election coverage
Meta remains silent, and the PT decides against filing with the TSE before the first round to avoid a prolonged legal fight during the campaign. The episode becomes a campaign issue for Lula's coalition and fades after the vote without court involvement.
4
TSE investigates Meta over disinformation ad profits
The Ekō research showing Meta profited from unauthorized disinformation ads could prompt the Superior Electoral Court to investigate Meta's ad practices. The court could order Meta to explain how shadow accounts bypassed its review systems.
5
TSE fines Meta for continued imbalance ahead of runoff
Deadline passed (Oct 25, 2026)
Discussed by: Justice Marco Aurelio Bellizze; Lula campaign attorneys
If Meta fails to comply with the equal-treatment order, the court can levy the 500,000 reais daily fine. The Lula campaign has said it is monitoring for continued reach reductions or algorithmic bias through the October 25 vote.
6
TSE opens investigation into Meta's ad review systems after UFRJ study
Possible
Resolves by Nov 15, 2026
Discussed by: Marie Santini, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro; Brazilian electoral authorities
The UFRJ study documenting 1,613 irregular political ads funded from the US gives the court grounds to investigate Meta's ad review systems. The PT could join or amplify a complaint seeking transparency and penalties.
Historical Context
2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
1 of 2
January 2021
Facebook suspends Trump (January 2021)
Two days after the January 6 Capitol riot, Facebook suspended then-President Donald Trump's accounts indefinitely, citing risk of incitement to violence. The suspension cut off his direct line to roughly 35 million followers.
Then
Trump was offline from major platforms for over two years and shifted communication to his own platform, Truth Social.
Now
Meta's Oversight Board upheld the suspension but criticized its indefinite term, forcing Facebook to set a review date. Meta restored Trump's accounts in early 2023.
Why this matters now
Shows how a single platform decision can remove a political leader's direct channel to millions of voters, and how contested such decisions become in democratic elections.
2 of 2
August 2024
X suspended in Brazil (August 2024)
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered X suspended nationwide after owner Elon Musk refused to comply with content-moderation orders, name a legal representative, and pay fines.
Then
X was blocked for about six weeks across Brazil before Musk's team agreed to comply with court orders.
Now
The episode hardened Brazil's stance on platform accountability and underscored the willingness of Brazilian courts to confront foreign platforms.
Why this matters now
Provides the backdrop for the Lula episode, where Brazilian authorities and platforms have a tense, adversarial relationship over digital speech during elections.
