Politics
FACT CHECK: Video Falsely Claims To Show ‘Ballot Stuffing’ In Michigan
A video shared on Facebook allegedly shows “ballot stuffing” in Michigan during the 2020 presidential election.
Verdict: False
The video, taken in 2018, appears to show an incident during an election in Russia.
Fact Check:
In recent days, misinformation surrounding the 2020 presidential election has been circulating on social media. This Facebook post shares CCTV video in which two women, one in a blue sweater and another in a floral dress, are allegedly at a polling place in Michigan stuffing multiple pieces of paper into a ballot box.
“Ballot stuffing in Michigan removed from Twitter,” one Facebook user remarked.
But there is no evidence that the video depicts such an incident in the battleground state of Michigan. A search of local news outlets such as WXYZ Detroit, Michigan Live and the Detroit Free Press found no reports of ballot box stuffing occurring in Michigan on Election Day. The video appears to be from 2018, when both AFP News Agency and The Washington Post posted it on their respective YouTube channels.
“Election observers highlighted CCTV footage provided by Russia’s Electoral Commission which appeared to show staff putting extra votes into a ballot box at a polling station in the Russian city of Lyubertsy on the outskirts of Moscow,” reads the description of the AFP News Agency video. “The Electoral Commission has acknowledged this instance appears to show fraud, and has said fraudulent votes will be cancelled.”
The ballot box in the center of the apparent polling place is decorated with a red and gold emblem that bears resemblance to the Russian coat of arms, further indicating that the incident did not take place in Michigan.
“That’s not a Michigan ballot box, nor a Michigan ballot tabulator,” confirmed Jake Rollow, director of communications and external affairs at the Michigan Department of State, in an email to the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Nor is it clear the video was shot in a voting location, or even in Michigan.”
The Associated Press called the presidential election in Michigan for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Wednesday.
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