Rumor vs Reality
- Reality Team
- November 7, 2020
This card was produced in partnership with the Stop Digital Voter Suppression Project.
‘Stop the Steal’ was created by Republican operatives to accuse Democrats of stealing the election. Its goal is to stop ballot counting and vote certification efforts, especially in key states with the highest numbers of electoral votes. Many of these states, including Pennsylvania and Georgia, also have significant numbers of Black and Brown voters.
The group’s Facebook page, which totalled more than 360,000 members, was banned by the platform after organizers started to veer into organizing an armed conflict. It has since moved on to the right-wing social platform Parler, and continues to try to spread voting misinformation and suppress legitimate votes by claiming that they are mostly concerned that votes are ‘legal.’ This is a form of voter suppression.
References
The New York Times: In a Year of Protest Cries, Now It’s ‘Count Every Vote!’ and ‘Stop the Steal!”
Wall Street Journal: Facebook Imposes Limits on Election Content, Bans ‘Stop the Steal’ Group
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