Lula fined USD 50,000 for carrying out negative propaganda against Bolsonaro

Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court (TSE) imposed a fine of 250,000 reais (about USD 50,000) on President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s coalition for promoting “negative electoral propaganda” against his rival Jair Bolsonaro during the 2022 presidential campaign.

“The TSE, unanimously, judged the presentation of the Coalition for Brazil and Jair Bolsonaro against the Coalition for Brazil of Hope and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to be appropriate, for encouraging the dissemination of negative electoral propaganda on the internet,” says the resolution dated of April 26, sent this Tuesday to AFP.

The ruling of the electoral authority includes the payment of “a fine of R$ 250 thousand” by those accused, and determined that they “refrain from promoting” the posts that were the subject of the action.

Bolsonaro’s coalition denounced that Lula’s camp had promoted a video that in its opinion violated TSE regulations.

The Brazilian court allows the promotion of candidates with proselytizing content to win votes, but prohibits the dissemination of negative content against adversaries.

The reported content branded the far-right as “incompetent”, “liar” and “inhuman”, and included images of the former president with controversial expressions.

For example, by minimizing covid or saying that “it is a big lie” that people go hungry in Brazil, a country where almost 64.2 million people suffer from food insecurity, according to official data.

The campaign was characterized by crossfire and the spread of fake news on both sides.

The then-president Bolsonaro, at a disadvantage in the polls, even questioned without evidence the solidity of the electoral system and anticipated fraud.

For misinforming about the voting system, the far-right was disqualified in 2023 for a period of eight years.

The candidates settled the election in a runoff in which the leftist triumphed with 50.9% of the votes, over Bolsonaro’s 49.1%. Fuente: AFP

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