Brazil electoral court asks Meta to explain restrictions on Lula accounts

Brazil's Superior Electoral Court gave Meta 48 hours to explain reported social media restrictions after a complaint by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's campaign. Meta denied allegations of election interference.

On October 10, the court asked Meta to list measures applied to each official Lula account and explain anomalies in video view counts. The request followed a campaign complaint alleging technical problems had reduced the reach of its posts.

The campaign said the president's account had recently been unable to promote Instagram feed posts. It also reported an interruption in the view count of one post and alleged that Lula's and other left-wing politicians' profiles disappeared from Instagram search before the first round.

Lula's team described the incidents as possible interference benefiting Flavio Bolsonaro. That is the campaign's allegation, rather than a court finding.

Meta's Brazil office told AFP the accusations were false and unsupported by facts. It said many of the reported technical problems affected more than Brazil or particular accounts. The company also said it followed electoral rules and provided equal conditions for using its platforms.

Meta owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Lula, who is seeking a fourth presidential term, faces Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, in the October 25 runoff. Flavio finished first in the October 4 initial round.

Since that vote, Lula's campaign has stepped up its social media activity, including videos in which the president addresses followers. AFP reported that Lula himself does not use a mobile phone.