Intel agencies pinpoint Russia as behind false Haitian Georgia voting claims

Intelligence agencies on Friday condemned Russian interference in the U.S. election, identifying the U.S. adversary as being behind a recent video amplifying false claims of Haitians attempting to vote in Georgia.

“The [intelligence community] assesses that Russian influence actors manufactured a recent video that falsely depicted individuals claiming to be from Haiti and voting illegally in multiple counties in Georgia,” the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said in a joint statement.

“This judgment is based on information available to the IC and prior activities of other Russian influence actors, including videos and other disinformation activities. The Georgia Secretary of State has already refuted the video’s claims as false.”

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Thursday called for X and other social media platforms to remove content he said was “obviously fake and part of a disinformation effort.”

“Earlier today, our office became aware of a video purporting to show a Haitian immigrant with multiple Georgia ID’s claiming to have voted multiple times,” Raffensperger said.

“This is false, and is an example of targeted disinformation we’ve seen this election. It is likely foreign interference attempting to sow discord and chaos on the eve of the election.”

U.S. intelligence agencies have identified Russia as being behind a number of different efforts to flood social media sites with false claims that inflame American divisions.

In an assessment released two weeks before the election, the intelligence agencies warned that Russia was ramping up its tactics. 

“The IC is increasingly confident that Russian actors are considering—and in some cases implementing—a broad range of influence efforts timed with the election,” the ODNI said in a report, using an abbreviation for the intelligence community.

“Some of these are aimed at inciting violence and calling into question the validity of democracy as a political system, regardless of who wins. Others are aimed at amplifying false information and conspiracies—that may exacerbate post-election tensions in the United States.”