Selective Outrage: Moraes’ Platform Bans vs. the “Exército do Lula” Channel
By Hotspotnews
August 2024: Nationwide suspension of X
On 30 August 2024, STF Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered the full suspension of X across Brazil. The platform had refused to appoint a legal representative and had not fully complied with orders to block certain accounts. Access was blocked, VPN use was targeted, and heavy fines were imposed. The ban lasted roughly 39 days. On 8 October 2024 Moraes lifted it after X named a representative and paid the fines. The First Panel later confirmed the decision.
February–March 2025: Nationwide suspension of Rumble
In early February 2025 Moraes ordered Rumble to block the account of blogger Allan dos Santos (a Bolsonaro supporter living in the US) and to appoint a legal representative in Brazil. On 21 February 2025 he ordered the immediate and complete nationwide suspension of the platform, citing repeated non-compliance, the absence of a representative, and refusal to submit to Brazilian jurisdiction. Anatel was directed to enforce the block.
In March 2025 the First Panel of the STF (Moraes, Flávio Dino, Cristiano Zanin, Cármen Lúcia, and Luiz Fux) unanimously upheld the suspension. Moraes criticized Rumble’s CEO for confusing free expression with “freedom of aggression.” Rumble and Trump Media challenged the orders in U.S. courts. Despite the official block remaining in force, reports in 2026 showed intermittent accessibility for some Brazilian users; Rumble’s CEO publicly stated the company had not complied with the content orders.
October 2026: Suspension of the “Exército do Lula” WhatsApp channel
In the presidential runoff between Lula (PT) and Flávio Bolsonaro (PL), deputy André Janones operated the large WhatsApp channel “Exército do Lula,” used for campaign mobilization with millions of followers.
On 11 October 2026 TSE President Kassio Nunes Marques ordered the channel suspended within three hours after a request from Flávio’s campaign alleging irregular content. The monocratic order bypassed the assigned rapporteur, Justice Ricardo Villas Bôas Cueva. Hours later Cueva revoked the suspension, citing insufficient evidence and free-expression concerns.
On 13 October Kassio re-suspended the channel for lack of formal registration with the TSE as an official campaign tool. After the PT campaign registered it, he authorized reactivation but imposed a 48-hour waiting period under electoral rules and noted potential responsibility for Lula and the coalition. Internal TSE criticism of the pattern of monocratic decisions grew. PT figures, including Rui Falcão, filed requests at the STF seeking investigation of Kassio and his precautionary removal from TSE electoral functions.
Moraes’ orders produced full nationwide platform bans on both X and Rumble for non-compliance with demands to appoint representatives and block specific accounts. The same political sector that largely accepted or defended those broad measures treated Kassio’s more limited suspension of one campaign WhatsApp channel as grounds for investigation and removal. All three episodes involved monocratic judicial power justified by claims of combating disinformation or protecting electoral integrity, yet the intensity of the reaction varied sharply according to the target.
#JustiçaEleitoral #STF #TSE #SelectiveOutrage #Rumble #XBrasil #ExércitoDoLula #LiberdadeDeExpressão #Eleições2026 #AlexandreDeMoraes #KassioNunes #DuploPadrão #PolíticaBrasileira
SOURCES:
Valor Econômico / Valor International (TSE internal disputes and channel status, 14 Oct 2026)
• Metrópoles (Rui Falcão filing at STF, 14 Oct 2026)
• Folha de S.Paulo (TSE internal criticism and PT actions)
• UOL and CNN Brasil (sequence of suspensions and reversals, 11–13 Oct 2026)
• Estadão and CNN Brasil (Moraes’ 2024 X suspension and lifting)