2024 U.S. Elections

Was a large crowd shown in a viral video on X.com related to the Kamala Harris campaign? No, that's not true: The footage showed a crowd at a concert for Hurricane Helene relief. Contrary to the implication made in a social media post, the concert and the crowd had nothing to do with the 2024 U.S. presidential race. The claim…

Did Tim Walz tell Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that his administration would make her Speaker of the House if Democrats win the election? No, that's not true: Walz suggested Democratic lawmakers should make her chair of a House committee, not the speaker. Walz is running for vice president, a position that has no direct role in picking House officers. The claim appeared…

Are Progress 2028 ads on Facebook authentic ads supporting Kamala Harris' presidential campaign? No, that's not true: These ads are not affiliated with the campaign or its supporters; instead, a conservative group paid for them to misrepresent her stance on controversial issues like gun buy-back programs and fracking. A Harris campaign aide told Lead Stories that Progress 2028's ads lie…

Did the E.coli outbreak involving McDonald's occur soon after Donald Trump worked at one McDonald's restaurant for one hour during his 2024 presidential campaign? No, that's not true: The E.coli outbreak traced to some McDonald's franchises began weeks before Trump's announcement he would do a shift at a single McDonald's restaurant. The Food and Drug Administration reported that the outbreak…

Do multiple entries of the same "Voter ID" casting ballots from different addresses on the same date in Michigan's Qualified Voter File indicate potential fraud? No, that's not true: Michigan's Department of State told Lead Stories that the Qualified Voter File only allows one ballot per voter per election. A spokesperson explained that "formatting errors" in displaying the database incorrectly…

Did a Virginia voting machine ballot include an 'i' in Donald Trump's last name, as a video on social media displays? No, that's not true: The misspelling of the presidential candidate's name appears only on an optional ballot review screen -- not on the paper ballot itself -- in Washington County, Virginia. The director of elections there told Lead Stories…

Did Democratic political consultant James Carville say that he believes Vice President Kamala Harris will lose the 2024 U.S. presidential election? No, that's not true: Carville posted on X that he would donate $100 to the Donald Trump campaign if a credible person came forward and proved they heard him make the statements attributed to him in a social media…

Did Kamala Harris' presidential campaign pay superstar Beyoncé $10 million to attend a Harris rally in Houston? No, that's not true: No public evidence exists to support this claim. The Federal Elections Commission's most recent records do not show that the Harris campaign paid Beyoncé for appearing at the rally. A campaign finance expert told Lead Stories he did not…

Did non-English-speaking voters cut in line to vote early in Pennsylvania? No, that's not true: A spokesperson for Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, told Lead Stories that a video circulating online is incomplete; some elderly and disabled people were allowed to wait their turn inside. A group of voters applying for mail-in ballots needed the help of translators, and the rest of…

Does a proposed New York state constitutional amendment "grant" voting rights "to illegal aliens" and "strip parental rights" by not informing parents without the child's approval about their decision to get gender transition surgery? No, that's not true: There is no mention anywhere in the proposed amendment of giving undocumented immigrants voting rights. The proposed amendment bans discrimination against gender…