U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, the long-shot presidential candidate from Hawaii, said in a federal lawsuit that Google infringed on her free speech when it briefly suspended her campaign’s advertising account after the first Democratic debate in June.
The lawsuit, filed Thursday in a federal court in Los Angeles, is believed to be the first time a presidential candidate has sued a major technology firm.
In a twist that reflects Gabbard’s unorthodox political views, the claim that her speech was stifled by Google is similar to complaints made over the last year in Republican circles. Few Democrats have raised similar concerns.
Big tech companies like Google are getting increasing scrutiny by lawmakers and regulators around the world for a wide variety of issues, including their influence on political debate, their handling of consumer data and the aggressive way they compete with smaller companies.
A day before the Gabbard lawsuit was filed, Facebook said the Federal Trade Commission had opened a formal antitrust investigation into its business practices. Earlier in the day, the FTC announced that Facebook was fined a record $5 billion for deceiving users about their ability to control the privacy of their personal data.
Tulsi Now Inc., the campaign committee for Gabbard, said Google suspended the campaign’s advertising account for six hours on June 27-28, obstructing its ability to raise money and spread her message to potential voters.
After the first Democratic debate, Gabbard was briefly the most searched-for candidate on Google. Her campaign wanted to capitalize on the attention she was receiving by buying ads that would have placed its website at the top of search results for her name.
The lawsuit also said the Gabbard campaign believed its emails were being placed in spam folders on Gmail at “a disproportionately high rate” when compared with emails from other Democratic candidates.
“Google’s arbitrary and capricious treatment of Gabbard’s campaign should raise concerns for policymakers everywhere about the company’s ability to use its dominance to impact political discourse, in a way that interferes with the upcoming 2020 presidential election,” the lawsuit said.
Gabbard and her campaign are seeking an injunction against Google from further meddling in the election and damages of at least $50 million.
Google has automated systems that flag unusual activity on advertiser accounts — including large spending changes — to prevent fraud, said Jose Castaneda, a spokesman for the company.
“In this case, our system triggered a suspension and the account was reinstated shortly thereafter,” he said. “We are proud to offer ad products that help campaigns connect directly with voters, and we do so without bias toward any party or political ideology.”
No other campaigns have publicly claimed that Google has suspended their advertising accounts.
Interest in Gabbard, who has served four terms in the House and is an Army National Guard veteran, spiked after the debate. She entered the presidential race as a relative unknown and is still polling at less than 1%, according to New York Times polling averages.
But her appeal has crossed traditional party lines. She has drawn support from both the right and the left because of a staunch anti-war message. She has also received favorable coverage from influential conservative news media like Drudge Report, Fox News and Breitbart.
Gabbard’s campaign is historic even in a race with many potential firsts. She was elected to the Hawaii House of Representatives when she was 21, becoming the youngest woman to join a U.S. state legislature. When she was elected as representative for Hawaii in 2012, she was the first Samoan American and first Hindu member of Congress.
Her political views are unusual among Democratic candidates. She has a history of making anti-gay statements and worked for an anti-gay advocacy group run by her father. She has since apologized and said her past views were wrong.
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