Zanin seeks answers before ruling on election-day mobile internet

Zanin seeks answers before ruling on election-day mobile internet
Supreme Court Justice Cristiano Zanin has given Brazil’s telecommunications regulator, Anatel, 48 hours to provide information on a request for uninterrupted mobile internet access around the 2026 elections. He also sought submissions from the Attorney General’s Office (AGU) and the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGR) before deciding on an injunction.

The case, ADPF 1,355, was brought by the Green Party and the National Confederation of Education Workers (CNTE). They challenge the oversight of mobile plans that cut off general browsing once a customer’s data allowance is exhausted while continuing to permit access to certain sponsored applications.

The applicants want operators barred from blocking browsing during the 72 hours before and 24 hours after each election round. Their proposal calls for a minimum, neutral connection without extra charges or the need to buy additional data. The argument is that limited access could affect voters’ ability to obtain information at a particularly sensitive time.

Zanin, however, has not ordered any change to mobile-service rules. His approach so far emphasizes consultation: the Supreme Electoral Court and Brazil’s Internet Steering Committee were notified and may also comment. The justice said the issue’s significance, the proximity of the first round and the fact that any measure would affect providers not formally party to the case made prior consultation advisable.

Both accounts therefore describe the same immediate outcome: a fast-track request for technical and legal assessments, not a ruling that free or unrestricted election-period internet must be provided. The eventual decision will determine whether the court sees the requested safeguard as necessary for equal access to election information or as a change requiring further regulatory and institutional scrutiny.

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