The FBI said attempts to impersonate the agency and mislead the public about its operations ‘erode trust in the electoral system.’
The FBI has disavowed a pair of videos purporting to be made by the bureau that raise election integrity concerns.
“The FBI is aware of two videos falsely claiming to be from the FBI relating to election security,” the bureau said in a press statement posted to its X social media page.
The FBI statement said one of the videos claims the bureau has apprehended three linked groups committing ballot fraud.
The bureau said the second suspicious video related in some way to Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff, but didn’t elaborate further.
“These videos are not authentic, are not from the FBI, and the content they depict is false. Election integrity is among our highest priorities, and the FBI is working closely with state and local law enforcement partners to respond to election threats and protect our communities as Americans exercise their right to vote,” the bureau stated.
“Attempts to deceive the public with false content about FBI operations undermines our democratic process and aims to erode trust in the electoral system.”
False election claims continue to weigh on the election process as states complete early voting and prepare to count the ballots on Nov. 5.
Last week, the Bucks County Board of Elections in Pennsylvania flagged a video purporting to show someone in the county ripping up mail-in ballots. In an Oct. 24 statement, the county election board said the ballots shown in the video were not authentic materials for Bucks County. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the FBI also issued a joint statement on Oct. 25, disputing the authenticity of the video and said it was a disinformation product created by Russian actors.
This week, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger disavowed another video purporting to show a Haitian national claiming to have voted multiple times using multiple Georgia ID cards. Raffensperger said the video was false and likely a “foreign interference” effort. He said he also alerted CISA to the matter.
Investigators are looking more closely at other possible election interference claims.
Raffensperger, on Nov. 2, said his office had identified four individuals who may have tried to cast multiple ballots during Georgia’s early voting period. He said the matter remains under investigation and his office will refer the individual cases to their local district attorneys if they believe those individuals violated the law.
Last week, election officials in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, began investigating 2,500 voter registration forms that they received in two batches. While some of the registration forms in those two batches appeared legitimate, Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams said others appeared dubious and potentially fraudulent.