In late May, a press release came out from the election integrity group Smart Legislation reporting that a pending lawsuit they filed has been brought into the evidence-gathering stage of discovery, a period in almost every lawsuit where all parties exchange evidence. This lawsuit alleges that there was a severe miscount of votes for U.S. Senate candidate Diane Sare in Rockland County, New York, as well as for former Vice President Kamala Harris.
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This press release was then reported on yesterday by Indian news outlet The Economic Times, an outlet that has previously come under fire for misinformation. Shortly after its release, several TikTok users shared it, including some alleging that this could impact the results of the 2024 Presidential election in favor of Harris.
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However, this is untrue. While the initial complaint – as well as a statistical analysis by Max Bonamente, a Professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Alabama in Huntsville – do allege some shocking statistics, including that Harris received zero votes even among registered Democrats in this region and that Sare only received .29% of the vote, this lawsuit nevertheless does not claim to overturn the results of the Presidential election as some social media users suggest.
Both the Economic Times and Newsweek report that these results, even if true, would not overturn either election. This is especially true for the Presidential election, as Congress has already certified Donald Trump as the winner.
Additionally, neither the original lawsuit nor the press release make claims about different election results. They cite the importance of this as relating to Rockland County residents’ constitutional rights, as well as being able to better crack down on instances of election fraud.
“There is clear evidence that the senate results are incorrect, and there are statistical indications that the presidential results are highly unlikely,” stated Lulu Friesdat, Founder and Executive Director of SMART Legislation, in the press release. “If the results are incorrect, it is a violation of the constitutional rights of each person who voted in the 2024 Rockland County general election.”
For now, the public should approach this case with caution, and should be wary of news heard on social media, especially outside of its original context. Currently, a hearing is set for September 22, where the results will remain to be seen.
Newsweek quoted an independent expert on interpretation of this data as well. Costas Panagopoulos, a professor of political science at Northeastern University, said: “Statistical irregularities in elections should always be investigated, but the sources of such inconsistencies, which can include error or miscalculation, are not always nefarious. Still, scrutinizing election results can strengthen confidence in elections. Mistakes can happen.”
He continued by adding that these election outcomes do not need to be changed. “That does not mean they should not be scrutinized, and any errors, if verified, should be corrected for the historical record. But there is not necessarily any need to invalidate any of these elections in these jurisdictions.”
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