As early voting in the US presidential election concludes, a video shared across platforms suggests voting machines in Arkansas are failing to record votes for Republican candidate Donald Trump and switching them to Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. However, the clip appears to show someone marking a touchscreen in two places with a fingertip and knuckle — and state election officials say they have found no evidence of devices malfunctioning or switching ballot selections, which voters have multiple opportunities to review.
“Arkansas Voting Machine won’t Allow the Selection of Donald Trump, but instead Switches it to Kamala Harris,” says an October 31, 2024 X post from an account that has previously shared election misinformation. “Why do these ‘glitches’ always favor democrats?”
The 18-second clip appears to show a child accompanying an adult in a polling booth and attempting to vote for Trump, the first name on the touchscreen ballot, and expressing surprise when the third name, Harris, lights up.
The same video spread on TikTok, Rumble, Instagram and Facebook — including in Spanish and Portuguese. Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene amplified it.
The claims come amid an avalanche of misinformation about the 2024 election. The posts about Arkansas are the latest in a series of unsubstantiated claims about malfunctioning or manipulated voting machines, the subject of litigation and conspiracy theories.
There is no evidence the devices changed any votes.
“We have not experienced or identified any evidence of malfunctioning or switching of intended votes. The marking device allows review of selections before going to the next page of the ballot,” said Chris Madison, director of the Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners, in a November 4 email.
“There is a review screen at the end of the ballot where all selections the voter has made are shown. Then, there is a reminder before printing the ballot card to verify all selections the voter wanted were correct. Then, the voter can review, and should review, the printed card to ensure their selections are reflected on the printed card. If the card is incorrect, a voter may request assistance from a poll worker, that ballot card is spoiled and the voter is given a new one to start over.”
Madison told AFP that, in the video of the child in the polling booth, “it looks like her knuckle touched the third name.” He said the machine “only selects one candidate.”
Madison explained the process in a demonstration with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette published on YouTube (archived here).
Election Systems & Software (ESS), which supplies the voting machines seen in the video, said the devices have multiple safeguards allowing voters to review their selections.
“Touch screen voting machines do not flip votes. Most commonly, reported instances stem from a voter not touching the text box in the correct place,” said company spokesperson Katina Granger.
“Actual confirmed cases of voters having issues in touching the correct place on a touch screen are, in fact, rare. Voters can select and re-select candidates at any time prior to printing their ballot.”
Granger added that “there is no scenario in which a voter would be forced to cast a ballot that they believe did not reflect their intentions.”
A judge last year dismissed a challenge to the use of ESS voting machines, ruling that they provide an opportunity for voters to verify their selections privately (archived here).
Read more of AFP’s coverage of 2024 election misinformation here.
EMEA Tribune is not involved in this news article, it is taken from our partners and or from the News Agencies. Copyright and Credit go to the News Agencies, email news@emeatribune.com Follow our WhatsApp verified Channel
