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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Fabricated Claim of Biden Campaign Official’s Arrest

Fabricated Claim of Biden Campaign Official’s Arrest

A viral tale on social media falsely claims that a campaign official for President-elect Joe Biden was arrested in an illegal ballot-harvesting scheme in Texas. He has not been charged or arrested. The false claim stems from unverified allegations in an unsuccessful lawsuit brought by a group of Republicans.

Bogus Theory Claims Supercomputer Switched Votes in Election

Bogus Theory Claims Supercomputer Switched Votes in Election

A baseless conspiracy theory claims that a secret supercomputer was used to switch millions of votes from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. Experts — and the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency — have said the theory is a hoax and that safeguards, including paper trails, would deter such an effort.

Biden Did Not Invent the ‘Office of President-Elect’

Biden Did Not Invent the ‘Office of President-Elect’

Social media posts falsely claim that former Vice President Joe Biden “invented the Office of President-elect.” Donald Trump and Barack Obama also used the term during their transitions to the presidency.

Pennsylvania Postal Worker Waffles on Election Fraud Claim

Pennsylvania Postal Worker Waffles on Election Fraud Claim

A postal worker in Erie, Pennsylvania, claimed that his superiors were backdating postmarks on ballots, then told federal investigators that he didn’t actually know that — and then went back to his original position. Despite the flimsiness of the claim, President Donald Trump and his supporters have used it in their effort to blame widespread election fraud for his electoral defeat.

Faulty Claim About ‘Biden-Only’ Ballots in Georgia

Faulty Claim About ‘Biden-Only’ Ballots in Georgia

Campaign officials for President Donald Trump and supporters have promoted the faulty claim that Joe Biden received nearly 100,000 votes in Georgia through ballots that only included selections for president, suggesting it’s “suspicious.” But the claim ignores that some voters do not vote a straight-party ballot.

Misleading Claim of Dead Registered Voters in Pennsylvania

Misleading Claim of Dead Registered Voters in Pennsylvania

A misleading claim that more than 21,000 registered voters in Pennsylvania are dead is circulating online. The figure comes from a conservative group that failed to convince a federal judge in October that its list was accurate.

Falsehood Tells of Withdrawn Pennsylvania Projection

Falsehood Tells of Withdrawn Pennsylvania Projection

Viral social media posts claim that the website RealClearPolitics rescinded a projection that Joe Biden had won Pennsylvania. But the website never called the state in the first place; many other media outlets have made that call.

Image of Newspaper Doctored to Show ‘President Gore’ Headline

Image of Newspaper Doctored to Show ‘President Gore’ Headline

President Donald Trump’s campaign pushed an altered image of a Washington Times front page to cast doubt on the 2020 election calls made by news outlets. The newspaper never ran the purported front page, declaring Al Gore the winner of the 2000 election.

Claim of Michigan Postal Fraud Is Moot

Claim of Michigan Postal Fraud Is Moot

A video from a right-wing activist suggests that U.S. Postal Service employees backdated ballots in Michigan. The claim is unproven, but, even if true, no ballots in the state are accepted after Nov. 3, regardless of the postmark.

Viral Video Doesn’t Show Fraud by Election Workers in PA

Viral Video Doesn’t Show Fraud by Election Workers in PA

A video from a livestream of the vote-counting process in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, shows election workers transcribing votes from damaged ballots so they could be scanned and recorded, according to the county. Social media users are sharing the video with the false suggestion it shows workers committing voter fraud.