Trump is allowed back on Facebook and Instagram.
Meta has restored former president Donald Trump’s access to Facebook and Instagram.
It comes after a two-year suspension following the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection on the Capitol.
Meta in January said it would lift Trump’s suspension “in the coming weeks” and would institute heightened penalties of a suspension between one month and two years if the former president violated its content policies again.
It means that Trump now has access to key platforms for voter outreach and fundraising ahead of his third run for the White House in 2024.
When he was kicked off the platform, he had 34 million on Facebook and 23 million followers on Instagram.
It is not clear if Trump will rejoin the platforms. He has yet to rejoin Twitter after new owner Elon Musk lifted the ban on the former president.
Trump’s campaign team directly asked Meta last month to unlock Trump’s Facebook account as he pursues another bid for the White House.
Trump started his own platform, Truth Social, after being banned from virtually all other social media platforms. Trump has amassed nearly 4.9 million followers on Truth Social. An exclusivity contract Trump signed with the company reportedly expires in June.
But Facebook in particular was important to him for his fundraising operations.
Before his suspension, Trump and his allies had spread misinformation about the 2020 election results, alleging the election had been stolen.
The ex-president is also facing a slew of legal battles and federal investigations against him and his company.
Trump’s ban sparked fierce debate, with Republicans deriding the move as big tech censorship, while others said it was too little too late.
Experts have said that the stakes for his potential return are high, considering his extremist rhetoric and propensity for spreading misinformation have only intensified since he left office.
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