A member of Congress supporting Lula created a WhatsApp group called Lula's Army that grew from 50,000 members to 10 million members.

Posted by The MeidasTouch Podcast, Oct 27, 2026Checked Nov 2, 2026

Polygraph verdictTrue

Sources: 8 support
Said: 1 time·
Confidence: 85%

The MeidasTouch PodcastOct 27, 2026

Congressman André Janones, a Lula ally, created the WhatsApp channel 'Lula's Army' (the Portuguese name is 'Exército do Lula'), and sources report it grew from about 50,000 members before the first round to over 10 million by the runoff, with AP and BBC citing 10.8 million.

What we found

Supports. Reuters reports that Janones, a deputy who helped Lula beat Bolsonaro in 2022, expanded a WhatsApp channel he called 'Lula's Army' from about 50,000 people before the first round to over 10 million in the runoff.[1][5]

Supports. The Boston Globe reports Janones called on about 53,000 followers after the first round, and the group then grew to 10 million, consistent with the claimed 50,000-to-10-million growth.[6]

Supports. BBC and AP report the channel grew to about 10.8 million followers, and AP says it gathered almost 11 million people, which is consistent with the claimed 10 million figure.[2][3][4]

Supports. CNN and Wikipedia say Janones, a congressman for Minas Gerais, created the WhatsApp channel in April 2026, and he is a member of Congress who supported Lula.[7][8]

Context. Sources differ on whether Janones created the channel or renamed an existing one as Lula's Army, and they describe it as a channel rather than a group; these are label differences that do not change the core claim.[6][7][8]

Context. BBC reports that political scientists say it is impossible to determine how many votes, if any, the WhatsApp operation influenced. This does not bear on the claim's membership figures.[3]