Here We Go Again: FBI Claims ‘Russia Russia Russia’ Behind Viral Fake Video of Trump Ballots Being Ripped Up in Pennsylvania

The FBI has once again pointed fingers at Russia, asserting that a viral video allegedly showing Pennsylvania mail ballots marked for Donald Trump being torn up was crafted by “Russian actors.”

The video, which made waves across social media last week, appears to show a worker discarding ballots marked for Trump, while those for Kamala Harris were left untouched.

WATCH:

Board of Elections Issued Statement on viral video of ballots being ripped up: “The envelope and materials depicted in this video are clearly not authentic materials belonging to or distributed by the Bucks County Board of Elections.”
Just a hoax guys pic.twitter.com/TcGNnn9vUS

— TaraBull (@TaraBull808) October 24, 2024

The Bucks County Republican Committee acted quickly, investigating the video and cooperating with the Trump campaign’s legal team. In a statement, the committee debunked the clip, pointing to inconsistencies in the footage.

The video, they stated, showed ballots with the wrong envelope color, incorrect paper quality, and lacked essential details like a return address.

Read the full statement:

“We have seen the video circulating on the internet showing someone, allegedly in Bucks County, ripping up ballots with votes for President Donald Trump. We immediately worked with our attorneys, as well as attorneys with the Trump campaign to investigate this. The Bucks County Board of Elections has confirmed that the actions seen in this video did not occur.

The video is fake, with things such as the color of the envelopes being the wrong shade of green, the paper is not the same quality used by the Bucks County Board of Elections, the envelopes lack a return address, and no employee at Bucks County Board of Election meets the description of the person in the video. Furthermore, no mail-in or absentee ballots have been or will be opened and counted until election day on November 5th.

To us, this is disinformation, aimed at scaring voters and dissuading them from using mail-in ballots or on-demand voting that uses the same mail-in ballot process. We have seen dirty underhanded tactics this year, from the defacing of signs, letters threatening Trump supporters, and now this video trying to scare Bucks County voters.

The workers at the Board of Elections help hundreds of voters every day, and are working tirelessly to process all applications they have received. Our County Party Chair and staff all voted by mail because we are sure that our system in Bucks County works and is safe.

We will remain vigilant. We will continue to work to help voters and ensure that every vote is properly counted.

Please do not let their scare tactics work… please continue to cast your ballots, and let’s win!”

We have seen the video circulating on the internet showing someone, allegedly in Bucks County, ripping up ballots with votes for President Donald Trump. We immediately worked with our attorneys, as well as attorneys with the Trump campaign to investigate this. The Bucks County…

— Bucks GOP (@BucksGOP) October 24, 2024

The official ballot is on the right: pic.twitter.com/hnsLs7KqU9

— ThePersistence (@ScottPresler) October 24, 2024

However, just as local authorities in Pennsylvania and Republicans were clearing the air, federal agencies like the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) jumped in with their own take, declaring that Russian operatives were likely behind the video.

According to a joint statement by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the FBI, and CISA, Russian agents manufactured and amplified the clip as part of a broader disinformation campaign to sow doubt about election integrity.

“Today, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released the following statement:

“The IC assesses that Russian actors manufactured and amplified a recent video that falsely depicted an individual ripping up ballots in Pennsylvania, judging from information available to the IC and prior activities of other Russian influence actors, including videos and other disinformation activities. Local election officials have already debunked the video’s content.

This Russian activity is part of Moscow’s broader effort to raise unfounded questions about the integrity of the US election and stoke divisions among Americans, as detailed in prior ODNI election updates. In the lead up to election day and in the weeks and months after, the IC expects Russia to create and release additional media content that seeks to undermine trust in the integrity of the election and divide Americans.”