2024 U.S. Elections

Did Kamala Harris ignore Hurricane Helene by not tweeting about it as a social media post claimed? No, that's not true: The first post about the natural disaster appeared on her official vice presidential account on X on September 25, 2024. That predated by four days the false statement about Harris supposedly failing to mention the hurricane, which only looked…

Does a video show Kamala Harris giving a speech in Los Angeles while drunk? No, that's not true: The clip was taken from a video of a 2016 speech Harris gave as California's attorney general. The video's audio has been slowed down to make Harris sound drunk and a caption was added that said "Dear Betty Ford.... HELP !!!". The…

Does a viral video show Donald Trump dancing on "Soul Train" in the 1980s? No, that's not true: When played at reduced speed, the footage of a 1987 "Soul Train" episode reveals that it features a different, younger man with a mullet. As multiple photos of Trump from that year confirm, he didn't have a mullet. The footage was originally…

Did federal prosecutors release an alleged assassin's bounty letter targeting Donald Trump because they "all want him dead"? No, that's not true: A handwritten letter allegedly by accused gunman Ryan Routh offering $150,000 to "whomever can complete the job" was included as part of the government's motion to keep him behind bars until trial. Other prosecutors say it's standard procedure…

Does a social media video show Kamala Harris giving a speech in Atlanta on September 20, 2024, while she appeared to be intoxicated? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found the original version of the speech, and the version circulating on social media has been slowed down to make her sound intoxicated. There is no evidence the vice president was…

Does a video show Usher refusing to support Kamala Harris? No, that's not true: In the full video taken from a talk-show appearance Usher said "Yes" when asked if he supports Kamala Harris for president. The video clip used on social media to say the singer didn't support her left that part out. The claim about R&B singer Usher appeared…

Did the White House announce a new debt-relief program for veterans who owe money on their credit cards? No, that's not true: A video on Facebook that made this claim used a fake screenshot of the White House website to create a misleading impression involving an article supposedly published on July 6, 2024. In reality, the Biden-Harris White House made…

Were explosive devices discovered at the site of a Donald Trump campaign event on September 18, 2024, on Long Island, New York? No, that's not true: Law enforcement denied the rumor. The police statement said that a person "training a bomb detection dog" near the event's location had made a false report. The claim about explosive devices appeared in a…

Did Taylor Swift lose 17 million followers after posting an endorsement for Kamala Harris on her Instagram account? No, that's not true: Numbers show that Swift actually gained followers shortly after her endorsement. The account that posted this claim has "#Satire" and "#Parody" in their bio. The claim appeared in a now-deleted post on X (archived here) on September 15,…

Does a police report prove that Haitian immigrants killed and mutilated a cat in Springfield, Ohio, as a post on X claimed? No, that's not true: the police report included in the post stated there was "no evidence to support" a caller's claim about Haitian immigrants stealing and killing her cat. It said that it was unknown if the meat…