Brazil electoral court fines Meta US$1.3mil in Lula-Bolsonaro spat

On Tuesday, Brazil's electoral court imposed a fine of approximately US$1.3 million on Meta, the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp, and Telegram, for failing to comply with court orders during the recent presidential election. Leftist candidate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva alleged that Meta had tipped the scales in favor of his rival, Flavio Bolsonaro, through algorithmic manipulation ahead of the October 25 runoff vote. Lula had won the election despite coming in second during the first round.

The Superior Electoral Court (TSE) unanimously ruled to impose the fine on Meta, citing the company's missed deadlines and lack of transparency in its investigation. However, the court's reporting judge Marco Aurelio stated that there was no evidence of Meta deliberately attempting to skew the election. Meta denied the accusations but admitted to technical errors that mistakenly deactivated some of Lula's campaign ads.

Following his electoral victory, Lula indicated that social media companies would face stricter regulation. Flavio Bolsonaro, who refused to acknowledge his loss in the runoff, fled Brazil for the United States amid an ongoing investigation into him for alleged money laundering.