“Listen to Reality, Not Rumors.”
That’s the slogan of North Carolina’s State Board of Elections, which has been using social media and the board’s webpage in an attempt to debunk popular myths regarding North Carolina elections as well as elections in general.
That’s a huge task given how fast misinformation travels along Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites. However, the state board says it has been doing its best.
The board has been listing notable rumors as part of a program called Misinformation Mondays. The rumors are posted – and then the reality is explained for those false rumors that have been spreading in the state this year and in the past.
The official stated goal of the program is “to educate the public and serve as a trusted source of election information.”
Also, if you have a question or a myth that you’ve heard, you can email the State Board at misinformation@ncsbe.gov.
Here are some of the myths that the board has been attempting to quash.
For those who have heard that “Voting systems are not tested and can be easily manipulated,” state election officials respond that “Voting system hardware and software undergo testing from federal, state, and local election authorities.”
One interesting rumor is that “Election administrators send annoying mass mailings,” but they say the reality is, “State and county boards of elections never send mass mailings about your voter record or your neighbors’ voting records. Political groups — not elections officials — do this.”
Another rumor is that “Votes should stop being counted on election night.”
In some cases, the Guilford County Board of Elections has been legitimately counting or recounting votes weeks after an election.
Anyone who has followed boards of elections knows that many votes routinely get counted in very long county board of elections meetings where the board members discuss in fine detail whether some questionable ballots should be counted. Provisional ballots cast on Election Day, for instance, often take a fair degree of investigation by elections staff and local boards of elections. That can take time.
According to the State Board of Elections, “Many military and overseas voters, as well as provisional voters, would not have their ballot counted if counting stopped altogether on election night.”
Here’s a list of some other false rumors the board has been attempting to debunk:
• No one investigates allegations of voter fraud in North Carolina.
• Writing on your ballot invalidates it. (The board states, “In North Carolina, election workers must write on your ballot during early voting. This includes a unique number assigned to each ballot as required by law.”)
• Polling places do not have accessible voting machines.
• College students must vote in their hometown.
• Provisional ballots are only counted in close contests.
• If you’re arrested for a misdemeanor, you lose your right to vote.
• Votes are being cast illegally by those 122 years old and older.
• I don’t need to update my registration if I move within my county.
They should list Austin and Alan’s comments on the Rhino times as misinformation sources as well.
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Hey, I’m living in Chrissy’s little head – rent free!
LOL!
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I gagged when reading “Voting system hardware and software undergo testing from federal, state, and local election authorities.” At this point in time, I’d trust drinking water from Tijuana more.
Based on what? Trump whining like a small child when he lost the election in 2020? Have you finally found the missing evidence of mass fraud conservatives keep harping about but seem to never produce? Or maybe, just maybe, you have been conned by the great conman, DJT?
Another rampant bit of misinformation is that you actually have to know something about what you are voting for, or against.
LMAO…a ” trusted source”. Good one Scott!
Trump’s been saying since 2016 elections rigged. So don’t vote.
Those clowns aren’t battling disinformation, they are propagating it. You only need to look at the political affiliation of the State and Local Election Political Majority Boards to see how the results will flow. The best example to look at is how Governor Cooper got elected to begin with. There was 90k plus ballots showed up from Durham at 12pm on election night, all for Cooper. Stalin was right.
Great example of misinformation OldSkool. Way to be part of the problem.
Those 90k votes where from a heavily democratic county that disclosed it was having technical issues downloading the results from their machines and the votes had to be hand counted. The entire process was handled in the open with both GOP and DNC observers directly involved. Even Mccory conceded it was not an issue.
But thanks again for giving us a great example of misinformation.
“It’s not who votes, it’s who counts the votes”
But this year it’s TOO BIG TO RIG !
I suspect that with the awful choices selected by both parties that this will be one of the lower turnout elections we have seen in a long time.
Chrissy predicts unusually low turnout in November! Ha, ha, ha!
Watch this space.