Arthur Aguiar removes prohibited electoral poll from Instagram

Brazilian actor Arthur Aguiar deleted an Instagram poll after being informed by a follower that the post violated electoral laws. The poll, which asked followers whether they would vote for Lula (PT) or Flávio Bolsonaro (PL) in the second round, was posted on Saturday, October 24.

Aguiar addressed the removal on social media, stating, “I had to delete the last poll, I didn't know it was prohibited to do this type of poll today.” He subsequently shared a screenshot of a query made to an artificial intelligence chat regarding the legality of the post.

According to regulations from the Superior Electoral Court (TSE), conducting polls or surveys related to the electoral process is prohibited after August 15 of an election year. The TSE defines such polls as opinion surveys lacking a scientific sampling plan, relying instead on spontaneous participation or self-selection bias, which can lead to inaccurate inferences regarding candidate rankings.