Meta tells Brazil court it treats Lula and Bolsonaro campaigns equally

Brazilian presidential candidates Flavio Bolsonaro and Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva take part in a presidential debate, ahead of the runoff presidential election, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, October 18, 2026. REUTERS/Jean Carniel

BRASILIA, Oct 20 : Meta Platforms, owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, told Brazil's Superior Electoral Court on Tuesday that it has adopted measures to ensure equal treatment of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's and Senator Flavio Bolsonaro's presidential campaigns on its platforms.

The filing came after an Electoral Court justice gave the company 24 hours to prove it had implemented measures ensuring equal content distribution ahead of Sunday's election runoff.

• Lula's campaign had initially complained to the court, questioning Meta's actions and alleging the company favored Bolsonaro's candidacy, which Meta denies.

• In a nine-page filing seen by Reuters, Meta listed 17 initiatives it took to comply with the court order.

• Meta attached a technical declaration confirming content related to both campaigns is treated equally and non-discriminatorily, describing mechanisms ensuring equality.

• Meta said it implemented prior human review of ad accounts for both campaigns.

• Any automated restrictions on the two campaigns' ad accounts are reviewed within two hours, a process that will remain in place until the runoff on Sunday.

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