When Facebook yanked Republican Congressional candidate Majed Moughni’s Facebook page last June 10, that was the end of his campaign. Or so alleges Moughni, who is now suing Facebook.
“I had no chance without Facebook. They disorganized us in the middle of our campaign and we lost. Facebook took us off the market. They took us off the face of the earth,” Moughni said.
Michigan's 15th Congressional District
Moughni’s 10-page suit alleges that, “In an attempt to overthrow the Dingell Dynasty, [I] devised a plan to use Facebook to accumulate thousands of friends, who in turn would spread the message and overseat the longest-serving member of Congress.”
Moughni had 1,600 friends and was adding more every day, then Facebook conspired with the Dingell campaign to eliminate Moughni from the competition. Okay, so Moughni is not quite alleging that, but if you read between the lines of his comments and lawsuit, it is a clear picture of the conspiracy racing in his mind.
Moughni is not doing this for the money. He is doing it for the 500 million Facebook users with no due process. He posted an explanation on his current Facebook page.
“Thousands of users have had their accounts de-activated without any recourse. Your account could be next. Many users do not have the money or the means to take on this modern day Goliath. That is why I’m willing to invest my time and money to stand up for right. I am is (sic) not seeking anything in return. I am only seeking a better, more user friendly, and more responsible Facebook. If this lawsuit is successful, there will be no losers and we all come out winners!”
Moughni was one of four Republican candidates. The winner of the primary, Rob Steele, gathered 18,538. He barely nudged out Moughni.
“Barely” is a relative term. Without Facebook, how can a candidate run for office and get elected? Despite the long odds, Moughni was able to get thirteen thousand, seven hundred…oh, wait…Moughni received 1,378 votes or 4% of the Republican primary vote as he ran a distant fourth.
If only he had a Facebook page, then he would have had another 17,200 votes and just enough to squeeze out Steele. If he had 1,600 friends on June 10, but only 1,378 votes on the August 3 primary, then Facebook must be responsible for losing those 200 plus supporters and stalling his campaign, right?
Facebook replied that his account was suspended because of “suspicious or anomalous behaviors” from his sending out too many friend requests. In other words, Moughni was a Facebook spammer.
Moughni is right about the arbitrary nature of Facebook. It is difficult to get a live person and the automated systems are a frustration. However, Facebook did not cost him his election. Perhaps if he had lost by 4% of the vote, then he could make that claim. Losing by 47% is hardly Facebook’s fault.
