The 2020 presidential election was stolen
| The 2020 presidential election was stolen | |
|---|---|
| FALSE | |
| "Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump in the 2020 US presidential election was the result of massive fraud, including fake ballots, dead voters, manipulated machines and illegal counting, and Trump actually won." | |
| Domain | Politics & Elections |
| Tactic | Conspiracy Theory Fabrication |
| Era | Current |
| First seen | 2020 |
| Origin | Statements by President Donald Trump beginning on election night, November 3–4, 2020, amplified by his campaign, allies, media outlets and social media |
| Last reviewed | 2026-10-27 |
| Further reading: books on Politics & Elections | |
The claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen is one of the most consequential pieces of political misinformation in American history. Joe Biden won 306 electoral votes to Donald Trump's 232 and won the popular vote by about 7 million votes. Trump and his allies claimed that the result was produced by widespread fraud. More than 60 lawsuits challenging the results were dismissed or withdrawn, including by judges Trump had appointed. Recounts, audits and investigations, including by Republican officials and Trump's own Justice Department, found no fraud on a scale that could have changed the outcome. The claim culminated in the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The claim
On election night, as counting continued, Trump declared that he had won and that there was fraud. Over the following weeks, he and his allies alleged ballot dumps in the middle of the night, votes cast by dead people and noncitizens, rigged voting machines, illegally excluded Republican observers and counterfeit ballots. Trump pressured state officials, notably in a January 2, 2021, phone call in which he asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to "find" 11,780 votes.
What the evidence shows
- Courts. Trump's campaign and allies lost more than 60 cases in state and federal courts, often for lack of evidence. In December 2020 the US Supreme Court declined to hear a lawsuit by Texas seeking to overturn results in four states.
- Justice Department. On December 1, 2020, Attorney General William Barr said the department had not seen fraud on a scale that could have produced a different outcome.
- Election security officials. On November 12, 2020, federal and state election security officials, coordinated by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, called the election the most secure in American history. Trump fired the agency's director, Christopher Krebs, days later.
- Recounts and audits. Georgia counted all of its roughly 5 million presidential ballots by hand, confirming Biden's win, and a machine recount confirmed it again. A review in Arizona's Maricopa County commissioned by the Republican-led state Senate and carried out by the firm Cyber Ninjas in 2021 found slightly more votes for Biden. A Republican-led Michigan Senate committee found no evidence of widespread fraud. Wisconsin recounts in two counties increased Biden's lead.
- Specific claims debunked. Claims of large numbers of dead voters, for example in Georgia and Michigan, were investigated and found to involve very few cases. Videos said to show ballot fraud were explained by election officials. A 2022 film, 2000 Mules, which claimed paid "mules" stuffed drop boxes, was later withdrawn by its distributor, which apologized to a Georgia voter falsely depicted.
- Legal consequences. Several lawyers who promoted fraud claims were sanctioned or disbarred. In Georgia, several Trump allies pleaded guilty in a state case related to efforts to overturn the results.
Consequences
On January 6, 2021, a crowd of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to stop Congress from certifying the results. Polls have found that a large share of Republican voters continued to believe the election was stolen. The claim has shaped later elections, contributed to threats against election workers and led to changes in election laws in several states.
Lessons for readers
- Claims of massive fraud should produce evidence that survives scrutiny in court.
- Ask whether officials from the claimant's own party confirm the claim.
- Hand recounts and audits are strong checks on machine counts.
- Specific allegations, such as dead voters, can be checked against records.
- Repetition and emotional appeal do not substitute for evidence.
See also
- Dominion voting machines switched votes in 2020
- Antifa was behind the January 6 Capitol attack
- Millions of illegal votes cost Trump the 2016 popular vote
- The 2004 election was stolen in Ohio
- Network Propaganda (Benkler, Faris and Roberts)
Sources
- Joint Statement from Elections Infrastructure Government Coordinating Council and the Election Infrastructure Sector Coordinating Executive Committees, November 12, 2020.
- Georgia Secretary of State, results of the 2020 presidential risk-limiting audit (full hand count).
- Michigan Senate Oversight Committee, Report on the November 2020 Election in Michigan (June 2021).
- Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, Final Report (December 2022).
- Lost, Not Stolen: The Conservative Case that Trump Lost and Biden Won the 2020 Presidential Election (report by Republican lawyers and former officials, July 2022).