Brazil's Electoral Court orders Lula government to detail institutional advertising spending

The vice‑president of Brazil's Superior Electoral Court (TSE), minister André Mendonça, ordered the administration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to provide, within ten days, a complete list of institutional advertising expenditures made between 2023 and the first half of 2026. The order follows a representation by the Liberal Party (PL) alleging possible violations of article 73, VII of the Electoral Law, which limits such spending to six times the average monthly amount spent in the three previous election cycles.

The PL presented two independent studies. One, using data from the Secretariat of Social Communication (Secom), calculated total spending of R$ 814.4 million for 2023‑2025, setting a limit of R$ 135.7 million for the first half of 2026; the PL says R$ 178 million had already been spent, exceeding the limit by R$ 42.3 million (about 31%). The second study, based on the Siga Brasil system and covering the entire federal executive, estimated a three‑year total of R$ 3.7 billion, establishing a semi‑annual limit of R$ 618.1 million; records up to 18 June 2026 show R$ 785.7 million spent, an excess of roughly R$ 167.6 million. Mendonça noted the differing data sources prevent a definitive conclusion that the legal ceiling was breached and called for a technical analysis.