X Changes Brazil Election Algorithm, and the US Calls It Censorship

A recent alteration to the Facebook-owned social media platform X in Brazil has reignited a contentious dispute between Washington and Brasília. The update, which came into effect on August 16, 2026, alters the recommendation algorithm for candidate posts on users' feeds. Starting from August 16, 2026, X stopped suggesting posts from official candidates to users who do not already follow them.

A module, called 'Brazil2026ElectionFilter,' was added to the open-source code to ensure that these posts do not appear in the 'For You' feed for non-followers. However, the algorithm change does not affect the candidate accounts themselves. The Brazil election algorithm change is not a decision made freely by X; it is following a rule set by Brazil's electoral court, known as the TSE.

Resolution 23.610/2019, as amended, instructs platforms to exclude registered candidates from their recommendation systems, with the exception of paid, clearly labeled ads. About 665 candidate accounts registered with the electoral court fall under the filter, and their posts, reposts, and quotes remain fully visible on each candidate's profile.

Followers can still access them, and anyone can open a profile directly to read along. The Brazilian electoral court's intention is to create a level playing field by preventing algorithms from disproportionately amplifying certain candidates during the campaign. Brazilian authorities maintain that enforcing election law is not the same as suppressing speech, as no accounts are banned and no posts are erased.

The dispute was sparked quickly by the US State Department. On the same day the code went public, Sarah Rogers, the State Department's under secretary for public diplomacy, stated that the transparency was welcome, yet it "makes explicit the censorship imposed by Brazil."