Foreign adversaries are expected to boost election fraud claims after Nov. 5.
Brian Munoz/St. Louis Public Radio
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Brian Munoz/St. Louis Public Radio
This story originally appeared as part of NPR’s live coverage of the 2024 election. For more election coverage from the NPR Network head to our live updates page.
America’s geopolitical adversaries, particularly Russia, Iran, and China, have been active in trying to influence this year’s election, as part of their larger goals to sow chaos and discredit democracy.
Russia is angling to boost Trump, as it did in the previous two presidential elections, while Iran is trying to undermine the former president, intelligence officials and private-sector researchers say. China does not appear to have a preference in the presidential race, but has targeted congressional races.
All three regularly seize on divisive issues, from immigration to abortion to Israel’s war in Gaza, to exacerbate discord among Americans. And they’ve all experimented with using artificial intelligence to churn out more misleading content.
People cast their in-person early ballot for the 2024 general election at the Northwest Activities Center on Oct. 29, in Detroit, Mich.
Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images/AFP
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Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images/AFP
The stakes could be even higher after Nov. 5 as foreign adversaries are expected to boost election fraud claims and manufacture their own material to cast doubt on the results. Russia is behind a fake video showing ballots being destroyed in Pennsylvania that circulated widely on social media last week, for example.
Foreign countries are better prepared to exploit the potential uncertainty of the post-election period this year, thanks to what they learned from the 2020 cycle and a better understanding of what happens after polls close, a recently declassified intelligence assessment concluded.
Russia and Iran could even escalate to inciting violence, by stoking threats towards election workers and promoting protests, intelligence officials have said.
