Brazilian electoral court removes videos by Lula and Janja
The preliminary decisions show how fierce the battle over online disinformation is becoming ahead of the second round of voting.
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Brazil’s electoral tribunal, the TSE, has ordered the removal of two videos posted online by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his wife Janja da Silva about rival Flávio Bolsonaro. The decisions are provisional and must still be reviewed by the full court.
The requests came from Flávio Bolsonaro, the right-wing candidate facing Lula in the second round. According to Brazilian media, they concerned a video by Janja and a video from Lula’s official Instagram account. The posts claimed, among other things, that a government led by Flávio would scale back social programmes, end Farmácia Popular and allow organised crime to escalate.
TSE judges found that these consequences were presented as established facts without sufficient factual substantiation. The court therefore ordered the posts to be removed. The measures are not a definitive ruling on all the political positions expressed in the videos and do not prohibit general criticism of Flávio Bolsonaro.
The TSE has intervened in the online campaign more frequently in recent weeks. Earlier, the court also ordered the removal of material linking Flávio Bolsonaro to criminal organisations. In doing so, the tribunal distinguishes between political opinion, verifiable factual claims and manipulated or artificially generated images.
The timing matters. The second round of voting is scheduled for 25 October. According to the official electoral authority, Flávio received 56.1 million votes in the first round and Lula 53.8 million. Free airtime for the second round also began on Friday 9 October, with equal blocks for both candidates.
For Dutch readers, the case is relevant because it shows how electoral judges try to limit online misinformation without banning political criticism altogether. That tension is recognisable in many democracies: platforms spread messages at great speed, while judicial assessment requires time and context.
The decisions could further legalise the campaign. Lula’s team will have to substantiate which statements were intended as policy criticism and which are presented as factual predictions. Flávio Bolsonaro, in turn, has more room to portray himself as the victim of inaccurate attacks, but his own campaign remains under the supervision of the same electoral court.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The TSE has issued provisional removal orders against videos by Lula and Janja.
- The orders are based on the assessment that certain consequences were presented as facts without sufficient substantiation.
- The second round of voting will take place on 25 October.
- The TSE monitors online campaign statements from both camps.
Left
Arguments Electoral judges must prevent candidates from being harmed by unsubstantiated or misleading claims. Rapid removal can protect voters when platforms fail to provide effective correction.
Values Protecting voters, truthful public information and limiting abuse of power.
Consequences Strict oversight can improve the quality of debate, but requires transparent criteria so that political criticism is not stifled.
Centre
Arguments The court should address only demonstrable factual inaccuracies and remain cautious about predictions concerning policy. Provisional orders should be reviewed quickly by the full court.
Values A balance between freedom of expression, equal campaign conditions and legal certainty.
Consequences A procedure combining rapid provisional measures with swift review can both limit harm and prevent arbitrariness.
Right
Arguments The electoral court should not decide which political warnings voters are allowed to hear. On this view, strong predictions about social policy and crime also belong in the election debate.
Values Freedom of expression, political competition and distrust of judicial intervention.
Consequences Allowing more room for campaign claims can make debate freer, but also increases the risk that unsubstantiated messages will influence the result.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
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The removal orders, their provisional nature and the electoral context have been confirmed by the TSE and several Brazilian media outlets. The policy consequences described in the videos have been attributed as campaign claims and not presented as facts about Flávio Bolsonaro.
- confirmed The TSE ordered two videos by Lula and Janja about Flávio Bolsonaro to be removed. — CNN Brasil and SBT News describe the separate provisional decisions. source
- confirmed The decisions must still be reviewed by the full court. — CNN Brasil refers to the orders as provisional decisions to be submitted to the plenary. source
- confirmed The second round of voting is scheduled for 25 October 2026. — The TSE publishes the electoral calendar and the date of the second round. source
- confirmed Flávio received 56.1 million votes in the first round and Lula 53.8 million. — These figures appear in the official TSE information about free airtime. source
- confirmed The TSE has previously also ordered material against Flávio Bolsonaro to be removed. — The TSE published a decision concerning AI-generated videos posted by Flávio; Agência Brasil described the earlier removal of a video against Lula. source
Editor's note
The removals and their provisional nature have been confirmed by Brazilian media. The content of the videos has been summarised and not presented as truth about Flávio Bolsonaro’s policy plans.Sources
- TSE manda remover vídeos de Lula, Janja e aliados — SBT News
- TSE manda remover vídeos de Lula e Janja com ataques a Flávio Bolsonaro — CNN Brasil
- Faltam 16 dias: horário eleitoral gratuito recomeça nesta sexta-feira (9) — Tribunal Superior Eleitoral
- Lula e Flávio disputarão 2º turno para presidente da República — Agência Brasil
- Direto do Plenário: TSE manda retirar vídeos com uso de inteligência artificial publicados por Flávio Bolsonaro — Tribunal Superior Eleitoral
More on this in Dutch media
- de Volkskrant — „brazilië verkiezingen”
- RTL Nieuws — „brazilië verkiezingen”
- NOS — „brazilië verkiezingen”