As millions of voters head down to cast their ballot for the White House and members of Congress, officials across the country are rapidly grappling with bomb threats, disinformation campaigns, and technical problems to keep polls open.
In Fulton County, Ga., officials said they received multiple bomb threats, including two incidents that forced officials to briefly close polling locations. In Indiana, text messages sent to voters falsely claimed friends and family could see who people voted for. And on the internet, the FBI warned that faked video clips were circulating telling Americans to “vote remotely” because of a terror threat.
In most polling locations across the country, voting that began days or weeks ago with mail-in ballots continued smoothly on Tuesday, according to reports. But several incidents highlight the reality of recent U.S. elections, where intelligence officials warn that foreign actors such as Russia and Iran are looking to influence outcomes and undermine voter confidence, and election officials are facing increased threats from an increasingly divided electorate.
In Georgia, a key battleground state that went for Democrats in 2020, Fulton County Director of Registration and Elections Nadine Williams said officials received five non-credible bomb threats Tuesday morning, including two incidents that forced officials to briefly shut down polling locations.
The two locations, Etris-Darnell Senior Center and C.H. Gullatt Elementary School, both in Union City, closed for about 30 minutes. Officials were already seeking a court order, Williams said, to keep the two locations open 30 minutes longer to make up for the time they were closed.
Some of the bomb threats, reported in multiple states, appeared to have originated from Russia, officials said.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger confirmed in a press conference the incidents in his state appeared to be linked to Russia. In a CNN interview, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said bomb threats were also received there that were linked to Russian actors, but officials said they were undeterred.
“Georgia is not going to be intimidated,” Raffensperger said. “Russia has picked on the wrong Georgia.”
In an unrelated incident, officials also arrested a 25-year-old Georgia poll worker Monday after he allegedly made a bomb threat to election workers.
Nicholas Wimbish allegedly had a verbal altercation with a voter on Oct. 16 and, later that evening, mailed a letter to the Jones County superintendent purporting to be from a “Jones County Voter.”
The letter alleged that Wimbish had “give[n] me hell” and that Wimbish — who was the actual writer of the letter — was “distracting voters from concentrating.” The letter threatened that workers should look over their shoulder, it threatened to “rage rape” female workers, and threatened to have left a bomb at an early voting location.
And in Indiana, some voters reported receiving a text message telling voters that “voting records are public” and that friends, neighbors, and family will know who they voted for.
Records on who someone votes for are private. Only the fact that a ballot was cast is considered public information.
The Indiana Democratic Party called the incidents “nothing more than voter intimidation.”
The incidents come as U.S. intelligence officials warned that foreign adversaries are continually trying to influence U.S. elections, stoke division, and undermine confidence in the elections. Those efforts, officials said, are expected to increase in the coming days.
“These activities will intensify through election day and in the coming weeks, and that foreign influence narratives will focus on swing states,” the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, FBI, and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said in a joint statement. “Influence actors linked to Russia in particular are manufacturing videos and creating fake articles to undermine the legitimacy of the election, instill fear in voters regarding the election process, and suggest Americans are using violence against each other due to political preferences.”
As voting got underway, the FBI warned that its name and insignia were being used in two fake news clips, including one that falsely claimed the FBI was urging people to vote remotely because of a terrorist threat.
A second video, which included a fake FBI press release, also alleged that five prisons in Pennsylvania, Georgia and Arizona had rigged votes from inmates and colluded with one of the political parties.
“This video is also not authentic, and its contents are false,” FBI said in a statement. “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.”
Voter interference and influence campaigns have become a growing concern since the 2016 presidential election season.
According to a recent Gallup poll, 57% of Americans say they are confident that the votes for the presidential election will be accurately cast and counted, but also found that Republicans have increasingly become more skeptical, with only 28% of Republicans having faith in the accuracy of the election.
Since losing the 2020 election, former President Donald Trump has cast doubt on the integrity of the election process, falsely claiming he lost the White House to President Biden because of voter fraud.
Multiple lawsuits in states across the country disputing the results were tossed out.
Trump has continued to cast doubt on the election this year, and has continued to sow doubt on election day.
Addressing his campaign staff from his headquarters in West Palm Beach, Fla., Trump on Tuesday questioned computers used in polling places, and the possibility that a winner might not be declared Tuesday night.
A winner might not be immediately known until all ballots are counted across the country in what is believed to be a tight race.
“That’s a little scary when they say, well, what are they doing?” Trump said, questioning why the results might not be immediately known. “You’re going to be watching to make sure there’s no cheating, right?”
The concerning threats come along with some of the technical issues that voting officials sometimes face during an election.
In Cambria County, Pennsylvania — another battleground state — officials said a software malfunction kept some voters from scanning their ballots, causing confusion and long lines.
Polls were set to close at 8 p.m., but the Pennsylvania Department of State announced a court order allowed polling places in Cambria County to stay open until 10 p.m.
