Lula Seeks Bolsonaro’s Disqualification Over Alleged Meta Interference

What changed

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s campaign has asked Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court to investigate Flávio Bolsonaro and seek his ineligibility over alleged misuse of Meta’s platforms before Sunday’s presidential runoff. The petition names Bolsonaro and his running mate, Alfredo Gaspar, and seeks an eight-year ban after the 2026 election.

Bolsonaro has answered with his own accusation: that Lula’s government used personal data from official databases to send mass WhatsApp messages promoting social programmes. Meta denies favouring either campaign. UN freedom-of-expression experts have nevertheless raised concerns about unequal reach, engagement and restrictions on campaign content.

Why it matters

This turns a platform dispute into a legal threat hanging over the final days of Brazil’s election. The TSE must now consider accusations that could affect who is allowed to contest future elections, while Meta is under pressure to prove that Lula and Bolsonaro receive equal treatment online.

The timing makes the allegations politically combustible. Bolsonaro narrowly led the 4 October first round but failed to reach the 50% needed to win outright. Lula is seeking a fourth term, and 159 million registered voters are due to vote on Sunday.

The informed outlook is that the court fight is unlikely to settle the election before voters cast their ballots, but it could shape what follows. If either campaign’s allegations gain legal traction, the result may be followed by an extended dispute over campaign conduct, platform governance and eligibility. For now, neither campaign’s claims has been ruled on, and the alleged differences in online reach have not been shown to have decided the vote.