In the final days of the presidential election, lies about noncitizens voting, the vulnerability of mail-in ballots and the security of voting machines are spreading widely over social media.
Fanned by former President Donald Trump and notable allies such as tech tycoon Elon Musk, election disinformation is warping voters’ faith in the integrity of the democratic process, polls show, and setting the stage once again for potential public unrest if the Republican nominee fails to win the presidency. At the same time, federal officials are investigating ongoing Russian interference through social media and shadow disinformation campaigns.
The “firehose” of disinformation is working as intended, said Pamela Smith, president and CEO of Verified Voting, a nonpartisan group that advocates for responsible use of technology in elections.
“This issue is designed to sow general distrust,” she said. “Your best trusted source is not your friend’s cousin’s uncle that you saw on Twitter. It’s your local election official. Don’t repeat it. Check it instead.”
With early voting ongoing, local officials such as Travis Doss in Augusta, Georgia, say they are fighting a losing battle against fast-moving social media rumors.
Doss, the executive director of the Richmond County Board of Elections, said many voters in his county do not believe absentee ballots are counted properly. Many think election officials are choosing which ballots to count based on the neighborhood from where they’re sent, or that voting machines are easily hacked.
In recent weeks, Doss himself heard a rumor that a local preacher told his entire congregation to register to vote again because the preacher had heard — falsely — that everyone had been removed from the voter registration rolls.
“Somebody hears something and then they tell people, and it’s the worst game of telephone tag there ever is,” Doss said. “It’s so hard to correct all the misinformation because there’s so many things out there that we don’t even know about.”
As early voting began in mid-October in Georgia, Doss had to remind some voters that poll workers would observe the polling place and election equipment all day, ensuring no one tampered with the process. He noted that the tabulation machines are not connected to the internet, nor are they being hacked. He also had to emphasize that the ballot drop boxes were sealed and secure.
The amount of disinformation spreading throughout the country is immense.
College students in Wisconsin have been targeted with text messages meant to intimidate them into not voting, even when they’re eligible. The Michigan State Police had to correct rumors that people were unlawfully tampering with voting machines in one precinct, when it was actually two clerk’s office employees testing the ballot tabulating devices. Scammers posing as election officials have been calling Michigan voters claiming they must provide their credit card and Social Security numbers to vote early.
“In order to protect our democracy, we must address the mis- and disinformation that is spreading like wildfire,” said Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP.
Ongoing lies
Musk, the owner of the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), has gorged on a smorgasbord of common election conspiracy theories. At a recent Trump rally in Pennsylvania, he falsely insinuated that voting machines designed by Dominion Voting Systems could steal this election from Trump. Dominion successfully sued Fox News and others for promoting that lie after the 2020 election.
Last month, Musk posted that Democrats are expediting citizenship for immigrants living in the country illegally so the party could get a permanent electoral advantage. Journalists have thoroughly debunked his claim. Trying to stir up anti-immigrant sentiment to motivate voters to the polls, Trump and his allies have for months repeated the lie that noncitizens are voting in droves.
Musk shared a bogus claim about widespread voter fraud in a Wisconsin county in the 2020 election. The targeted jurisdiction, Henrico County, posted a thread on X correcting Musk’s assertions with data. Musk also amplified a claim that Michigan’s voter rolls were packed with inactive voters and ripe for fraud. Top state officials had to rebut those false claims too.
“The most dangerous and effective thing is that retweet button,” said Jay Young, senior director of voting and democracy at Common Cause, a national voting rights group that has a social media monitoring program tracking online disinformation.
Beyond Musk’s posts, disinformation has thrived on X.
The American Sunlight Project, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that fights misleading information and is run by the former head of a U.S. Department of Homeland Security disinformation team, released a report this month on the scope of the problem. The report found that nearly 1,200 likely automated accounts on X are spreading Russian propaganda and pro-Trump disinformation about the presidential election.
American spy agencies believe the Kremlin is actively pushing election disinformation this year.
And nearly half the Republican candidates running for top state offices or Congress have questioned the integrity of this year’s election, primarily through social media, according to an analysis by The Washington Post. Many of the candidates’ posts include falsehoods.
Sustained lies about election integrity have consequences: State and local election officials have been bombarded by threats and harassment this year, and confidence in elections has plummeted.
According to an October NPR/PBS News/Marist poll, more than 3 in 4 Americans remain confident or very confident that state and local agencies will carry out a fair and accurate election.
Still, 58% of Americans say they are concerned or very concerned that voter fraud will occur this year. Among Republicans polled, 86% are concerned about fraud, while 55% of independents and 33% of Democrats have a similar fear.
How officials respond
Over the past four years of going to town hall meetings and other community events throughout Oconto County, Wisconsin, on the western shore of Green Bay, County Clerk Kim Pytleski has repeatedly heard from voters who say that because their preferred candidate did not win in 2020, there must be something wrong with the electoral process.
Presented with conspiracy theories, Pytleski, a Republican, doesn’t just tell voters they’re wrong; she asks where the voter got that information, and then she walks them through the specific concern with step-by-step details about the voting process.
One concern that often comes up: the volume of absentee ballot applications voters receive in the mail. Many residents think the applications are actual ballots that can be marked and returned.
Voters will claim if there were that many ballots being sent, there must be election fraud, she said. Pytleski has had to explain that those were applications, and they were coming from political parties and other groups. Voters can only receive one ballot from her office, she will tell them.
“And when we’ve explained that, for the most part, people are like, ‘OK, that makes sense. I get that,’” she said during an interview in August.
Touching her right hand to her heart and raising her hand to the sky, Pytleski said she’s a dedicated member of the Republican Party, like most of the county’s voters. But it has been challenging for her to go to those meetings and feel voters’ suspicion. She’s even been called a liar to her face.
“I’m walking into a room that feels not so super-friendly, and I have to remind them that this is the girl that rode the bus route with your children, this is the girl who grew up in that house down the road,” she said. “My name means something to me, so I would never do anything to jeopardize that or the actual process.”
Misinformation can arise after local election offices err in some way, whether it was a misprint on a ballot, an electrical power outage at a polling place or something else.
Lisa Posthumus Lyons, the Republican clerk for Kent County, Michigan, regularly reminds voters that elections are run by humans and humans make mistakes, but that there are checks and balances in place to ensure elections remain secure and transparent, she said.
On her desk, a decorative sign reminds her to “Serve the Lord with Gladness.” She said she hopes voters will share her optimism and faith in the system.
“Their rights are going to be protected, their votes are going to be counted, the election is going to be accurate and fair, and we’re going to have a good day,” she said. “Anything that arises, we’ll be ready for it. It’s as simple as that.”
Beyond listening to local election officials, voters can rely on election protection hotlines run by experts and pro-democracy advocates, said Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a national legal advocacy group.
The committee is one of many voting rights groups in a coalition that is leading the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline this election season. The groups run similar hotlines for people who speak Spanish, Arabic and around 10 Asian languages.
With all the hotlines, Hewitt said, voters can call with questions or concerns about their access or about election procedures.
“This is something that we attend to not just when there’s a problem, but it’s something that we try to get ahead of,” he said. “We’re there to help guide them every step of the way.”
–Matt Vasilogambros, Stateline
Wallingford says
It’s no wonder that Russian organizations are spreading information for the benefit of Trump since Trump and Musk, the man who will have a major role in a Trump Administration, have been in contact personally with Putin. Putin is probably orchestrating the misinformation campaigns.
The Biden Administration should investigate Musk’s Defense contracts since he seems to be at Putin’s beck and call.
Putin wants a weak leader like Trump so he can manipulate him
Sid says
So your headline blames Trump and Musk. Yet the story says preachers and social media rumors. Pretty tricky of you.
FlaglerLive says
A couple of excerpts from the article, which Sid must’ve skipped:
“Fanned by former President Donald Trump and notable allies such as tech tycoon Elon Musk, election disinformation is warping voters’ faith in the integrity of the democratic process, polls show, and setting the stage once again for potential public unrest if the Republican nominee fails to win the presidency.”
“Musk, the owner of the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), has gorged on a smorgasbord of common election conspiracy theories. At a recent Trump rally in Pennsylvania, he falsely insinuated that voting machines designed by Dominion Voting Systems could steal this election from Trump. Dominion successfully sued Fox News and others for promoting that lie after the 2020 election.”
And more along the same lies.
USMC Ken says
There are over 100 law suits filed by States Attorney Generals (liberal and conservative) for various reasons, but all concerning voting (fraud, ballots, illegal migrants registering..etc) in one way or the other. One would assume that some will succeed and some wont. It will all come out in the end.
Jake from state farm says
The largest threat is the bias, disinformation and lies spread by all forms of the media. That goes from those that lean left and those that lean right. There is no longer sharing of facts in an unbiased factual manner. There is only opinion pieces.
Pierre Tristam says
There is no comparison between the two, and to fabricate an equivalence between the systematically knowing lies of the Trump-Musk kind, which are only comparable to Goebbels-era propaganda, and the occasional errors and exaggerations of the left that have been part of American and global politicking since Gilgamesh, is to be complicit with and an apologist of the lies.
USMC Ken says
“Occasional errors and exaggerations”? Really? They happen daily in multiple publications, news and broadcasts, and every other platform on the planet, with the help of the donors of course. The lies and misinformation is spread by both parties…They can and will continue to say them until people start believing them.
Jake from state farm says
That is your opinion sir. The FACT that FL seems it cannot run an article about anything disparaging of the current democrat nominee proves the point. Nothing about her inability to answer a question about what her policies really are. She is not cable if answering a question. You can say the same about Trump and you do but you don’t about the dear Democratic candidate. It is funny that you seem to even run a positive article promoting the current democrat nominee is also telling. Your fallback is always to “lack of equivalency”. Whether it is to Trump or to Israel going after the thugs hiding behind the skirts of the woman and children in Gaza or Lebanon. Report the facts from both sides and don’t make everything an opinion piece. Stop hiding behind your “lack of equivalency” and be equivalent.
Jeani Whitemoon Duarte says
Could you say this in easier words? It’s a roller coaster.
Pierre Tristam says
Sure: liars destroy. Mistakes and exaggerations are reparable.
Hail Trumpler and His giddy helper says
Trump is doing exactly what Hitler did. Elon’s just along for the free cash and power his position will yield – He not dumb.
Atwp says
Why would anybody in their right mind vote for Trump. Grown some old are still going to jail for this crazy man. Remember the 2020 chaos about the election being stolen, Trump is crazy. The only voter fraud I’ve read about was involving Republicans. While I’m on the subject of the Republicans, what happened to to large caravan of immigrants coming to the country? What happened to the smoking gun a Republican man had on Joe Biden? The smoking gun didn’t exist. I think his name is Gomer. Don’t see him in the news anymore.
Laurel says
Oh my, Putin is so happy right now! The Republican Party has always considered Putin an adversary, but Trump sees him as more honest (a KGB agent) than our own intelligence. One of many red flags.
We never had social media with its multiple lies, until lately. We had faith that our votes were good, we never thought otherwise. I still have that faith. Though, as an Independent, I have been slapping the Republicans around, I still believe our Republican Supervisor of Elections is doing an excellent job. She is the only Republican I have supported these late days.
We got our mail in ballots, did our research (not just from confirmation bias outlets), filled them out, and decided to use the drop box. We went to the the Palm Coast Community Center, drove through the entrance, passed the people with Trump signs, and since we were not interested in Trump flyers, we heard the man handing them out say about us “Just horrible.” So on our way to vote, we were told we were “Just horrible.” Then we passed up the “Christians for Trump” guy, and my husband was completely upset, and offended, that anyone would call themselves a Christian (he’s a Christian) and be campaigning for Trump. We did not see the drop box and left.
Since we were heading west anyway, we went to the Library. There, we saw the drop box, with an attendant. I jumped out of the car, walked up to the drop box and smiling attendant, and showed her our ballots. She asked us to show the ballot signatures, which I did, and she confirmed they were signed and told me to deposit the ballots. I did, and she never touched them. So, what’s wrong with that?
A couple days later, I logged onto our Supervisor of Elections website http://www.FlaglerElections.gov/faq and saw that our ballots were counted. Thank you Kaiti Lenhart!
So, people, stop listening to the bullshit, and start believing in your own country again! Don’t give that asshole, Putin, anymore to smile about. Know him for what he is.
Judith G. Michaud says
We drive our ballots directly to the Supervisor’s office and hand them to an attendant and wait until he checks our signatures in his computer ! This election is far too critical for any mistakes ! I have never been more scared in my life! tRump wanted Hillary jailed for emails and here he is a convicted felon, and people are still voting for him! How can this be happening in America?
Jim says
In my work career I saw many instances where a person would regularly point their finger at someone or some group accusing them or some mistake or doing something wrong. What I saw time after time was that the person pointing the finger was in fact either screwing up more than anyone else or they were in fact the one breaking the rules. And that’s what I see the Republicans doing now. If you can’t stand on the facts just lie about the Democrats.
The economy is terrible bot the stock market has reached historic highs. Yet he who has filed multiple bankruptcy will solve all our worries.
Inflation is killing all of yet we’ve likely brought it under control.
Crime is out of control but the architect of January 6 and a convicted felon will save us all even though the statistics don’t back up those claims.
Haitians are eating the dogs and cats.
Children go to school as one sex and come home the same day as the opposite sex.
“I am the protector of women” says the guy who takes credit (when it suits him) for killing Roe and forcing many women into life threatening situations because doctors are afraid of going to jail.
Dominion machines cost Trump the last election and may do it again. Fox News paid $787M for promoting that BS yet the richest POS in the country puts it out there again.
I don’t know. What the Republicans stand for anymore. All I know is what they are against. And their supporters don’t do any research on what crap is said. Trump says it and Fox echoes it and that’s all the fact checking they need.
I’m sick of it and I hope there will be a large majority that joins me in voting against these liners and grifters.
Deborah Coffey says
Maybe we need to make spreading false election stories a felony. And, I certainly hope Dominion goes after Elon Musk. $800 million won’t hurt him like it hurt FOX “fake news,” but he deserves to be outed and penalized.
The Sour Kraut says
In other words, they are doing everything we expected them to do to seed doubt about the outcome of the election so they can circumvent the will of the people.