Fulton County warns voters over fake polling texts as legal battles and federal probes hit midterms

Election officials in Fulton County, Georgia, are warning voters about fake text messages claiming polling places have changed. Fulton County noted on X that these texts did not come from them and advised voters to verify details online or call the official helpline. It remains unclear how many people received the messages or who sent them.

Court Rulings and Ballots

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit reinstated a decision allowing the Trump administration to request that election officials set aside ballots returned from alleged noncitizens. The Justice Department previously targeted more than 20,000 alleged noncitizens in California and over 400 in Washington. Two labor unions, the NAACP and the League of United Latin American Citizens filed a lawsuit before the appeals process unfolded.

State Monitors and Investigations

Secretaries of state in Michigan and New Mexico reported that Justice Department election monitors acted unlawfully by asking poll workers for training materials or questioning voters. Meanwhile, Democratic attorney Marc Elias is a target in a Justice Department criminal investigation into voter confusion in Alaska involving a candidate with a matching name to Senator Dan Sullivan. Additionally, the Biddeford Police Department in Maine is investigating vandalism outside Senator Susan Collins' office.

Context

Misinformation regarding polling locations and legal disputes over mail-in ballots frequently emerge during high-stakes U.S. midterm elections. These developments highlight the intense oversight and administrative challenges election workers navigate across multiple states.