Brazil's Electoral Court Bans Lula Ad Amid Meta Controversy

The Superior Electoral Court of Brazil issued a preliminary order on October 21, 2026, requiring the re-election campaign of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to stop airing a television advertisement. The ad used staged scenes and a clip of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro to suggest he harassed women. Minister Marco Aurélio Bellizze ruled that the editing could change the meaning of the original video, though he denied a request to strip the Lula campaign of its free television airtime.

This legal battle occurs during a tight presidential runoff scheduled for October 25. The election has been further complicated by allegations that Meta suppressed content from Lula's campaign while favoring Flávio Bolsonaro. Watchdog groups, including Eko and CTRL+Z, report that Meta failed to comply with Brazilian laws banning AI-generated candidate depictions and requiring disclaimers for AI political ads.

Reports indicate Meta approved AI-generated ads promoting violence and allowed over 1,600 political ads paid for by foreign entities. Meta denied favoring any candidate, attributing the suspension of Lula's advertising account to technical errors and arguing that Brazil's strict digital-content rules threaten free expression.