FACT FOCUS: False accusations and unverified claims quickly spread about Election Day voting

WASHINGTON (AP) — Election Day was barely underway before unverified rumors of voting irregularities surfaced online.

One actual ballot-scanning malfunction, in Westchester County, New York, in particular gave rise to baseless theories about activities by Democrats or their allies to suppress Republican votes. But there was no indication that episode was engineered to disadvantage either party — “no shenanigans,” said the Republican lawmaker seeking reelection there.

In Fulton County, Georgia, officials said some voters reported receiving false texts about polling place changes that were not sent by the county. Election watchdogs said it was unclear who sent them and whether the texts were an effort to deceive voters.

A look at some of the claims that made the rounds on social media before the midterm election polls closed Tuesday.

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CLAIM: Issues with voting machines in Westchester County are evidence of Democrats cheating.

THE FACTS: There is no credible evidence to suggest the ballot-scanning malfunction in the suburban county north of New York City was anything other than a technical problem.

Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, whose seat was on the line, did not see malfeasance at work. “There’s no shenanigans,” he told Fox News.

But posts were quick to portray the problem as evidence of nefarious activity.

“Nothing to see here? Just front load the early voting & then stop people voting on election day when more Republicans typically vote,” said one post. ”Corrupt (New York Attorney General) Letitia James says she’s ‘monitoring the situation’ which probably means they’re cheating. Flood the zone with our own people,” another post suggested.

The problem delayed vote counting, though voting was able to continue. Election officials said the scanners were not accepting paper ballots, an issue that resulted from a program update made after polling equipment was initially prepared and tested. That required the ballots to be placed in emergency bags for later counting.

Earlier, Lawler assured voters in a post: “We do not yet know the exact cause of the issue, whether it is the ballot or the machine. The Board of Elections is working with their vendors to resolve it. However, every ballot will be counted.”

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CLAIM: An FBI raid at a storage locker warehouse in Houston on Monday uncovered more than 20,000 fraudulent ballots for Democratic candidates.

THE FACTS: This is false. The FBI’s national press office said no raid took place.

“FBI Houston is aware of social media posts claiming the office conducted an election-related ‘raid’ that ‘uncovered fraudulent ballots’ on November 2, 2026,” it wrote in a statement. “That information is false and no election-related operation occurred.”

The claim was first made by a social media user who describes himself as a “Digital Content Creator for Pro Trump Administration.” His Facebook profile identifies him as a comedian.

Posts by the user included three photos that have nothing to do with the alleged fraud. The first shows an FBI raid in January at the main election facility in Georgia’s Fulton County. The second is from a rent listing for Public Storage units in Houston. The third shows ballots in San Francisco collected from an official drop box in October.

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CLAIM: A poll worker in Rogers, Minnesota, who wore a shirt spattered with fake blood that said “Problem Solved,” was mocking the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

THE FACTS: This is false. The shirt did not refer to the slain conservative activist and the poll worker said she was not making a comment about him.

In a statement, the city said: “We have spoken with the judge/volunteer in question who has assured us that there was absolutely no political message or intent behind the shirt, that it was worn as Halloween attire, and that they would never be supportive of the apparent message that others have tied to it.”

The poll worker is a Republican, the city said.

A photo spreading on social media shows the poll worker, whom Rogers officials identified as an election judge, wearing the shirt while she sits at a table in front of a laptop. Election judges are temporary employees “trained to handle all aspects of voting at the polling place.”

The shirt “did not meet the statutory definition regarding prohibitions against political party or campaign messaging at polling places,” according to the city’s statement. It said the worker would have been asked to remove or cover up the shirt had “the perceived political connection of the shirt been known at the time.” Officials said the poll worker was not sent home to change her shirt, despite claims otherwise on social media.

Kirk, a close ally of Republican President Donald Trump, was killed in 2025 during an event at Utah Valley University. Video of Kirk being shot that went viral immediately following the attack showed blood gushing from his neck onto his white T-shirt.

Rogers is part of Hennepin County, outside of Minneapolis.

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CLAIM: NBC, even before knowing the outcome of all the congressional races, is going to declare that Democrats won control of the House and Senate.

THE FACTS: That’s not at all what NBC News said in its guidance on X, which the accuser included in a social media post. NBC News said it was possible, though unlikely, that control of the House and Senate could be known before the end of the night. That guidance correctly summarized the consensus in opinion polling that Democrats went into Election Day with an advantage, without asserting the polling was necessarily right.

The X post from NBC News said: “Democrats are heavily favored in public polling in the House and in several key Senate races. If those numbers prove accurate, it’s possible that NBC News could project control of both chambers on election night. But it’s more likely that determining the winners will take time.”

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Associated Press writers Tiffany Stanley in Washington and Claire Galofaro in Louisville, Ky., contributed to this report.

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