Why social media has become an election issue in Brazil’s presidential race

Ahead of Brazil’s presidential runoff, incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is facing right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro in a race expected to be tight. Meta, which owns Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram, has been accused before the Superior Electoral Court of suppressing Lula’s content and favouring material promoting Bolsonaro. An analysis by G1 found that Meta received at least 288 million Brazilian reais ($57m) in direct campaign spending in 2026, twice its 2022 total. More than 76 percent of voters now get their news online, as online figures such as Nikolas Ferreira and Erika Hilton win record vote totals and re-election to the Chamber of Deputies.