Dot printed near Harris on ballot would not invalidate vote for someone else | Fact check

The claim: Dot by Kamala Harris’s name on Kentucky ballot invalidates votes for any other presidential candidate

A Nov. 4 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) includes an image of a ballot with a small printed dot in the box next to Vice President Kamala Harris' name.

“VOTERS, I seen this yesterday – Look closely at your ballot," reads part of the on-screen text included in the image. “If it has a small ’dot’ in the Camilla (sic) box, take a pic of it and ask for another one. Any other box filled in, will be void.”

The post was shared more than 100 times in a day.

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Our rating: False

A stray mark as shown in the post would not invalidate the vote, election officials said. There are safeguards in place for voters to clarify their choice or immediately cast a new ballot if a stray mark or printing error causes an overvote, according to the Kentucky Board of Elections. Elections officials also questioned the authenticity of the image, as the board was unaware of any complaints of pre-marked ballots in the state.

Absentee, in-person voters could clarify or revote

Through Election Day, misinformation about election interference and fraud has spread on social media – including claims that methods of voting have been tinkered with to steer votes from former President Donald Trump to Harris.

The purported image of the marked ballot in Kentucky fits into that narrative, but state officials said voters would have ways to make sure their votes are properly counted. And beyond that, they questioned if the image shows an actual ballot.

The Kentucky Board of Elections said in a Nov. 4 statement that it knew of no complaints of pre-marked ballots reported by Kentucky voters to the board or elections officials. More than 100,000 mail-in absentee ballots were sent to voters ahead of the election, and more than 600,000 voted in-person in Kentucky during the three-day early voting period, according to the statement.

“The claim that at least one ballot may have had a pre-printed mark in Kentucky, currently only exists in the vacuum of social media,” the statement says.

Even if a ballot had a preprinted mark, the board said voters would be able to choose their preferred candidate.

Ballots with marks for too many candidates for an office would be rejected when scanned, the board’s statement explains. If voting in-person, that scanning happens before the ballot is formally accepted, giving the voter a chance to vote on a new, clean ballot.

If someone voting by mail noticed a mark already on the ballot, or they accidentally marked a selection incorrectly, the instructions supplied with the ballot say the vote “will be counted if the voter circles their preferred choice,” according to the statement.

In either event, the board encouraged voters to notify the attorney general’s office or their county clerk if a ballot arrives pre-marked.

Fact check: Officials say Kentucky voting glitch an 'isolated incident'

Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams similarly dismissed the claim, saying in a post on X, formerly Twitter, “Social media 'influencers' are interested in eyeballs, not facts,” and linking to an article addressing the claim.

A sample ballot matching the one seen in the social media posts also did not contain a dot indicating a vote for Harris for president.

Claims of difficulties casting votes surged ahead of Election Day. USA TODAY has addressed claims of early votes being set aside and not counted in Illinois, voting machines switching selections in Georgia and the significance of Trump’s name being misspelled on a confirmation screen in Virginia and on a ballot in Ohio.

USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the claim for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

AFP, PolitiFact and Lead Stories also debunked the claim.

Our fact-check sources:

• Kentucky Board of Elections, Nov. 4, Statement

• Michael Adams, Nov. 4, Post on X

• Kentucky Secretary of State, accessed Nov. 5, Pulaski 2024G Sample ballot

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This story was updated to correct a typo.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kentucky officials doubt veracity of viral ballot image | Fact check