Post-election fact check: from claims of rigged voting to incorrect figures
The fact-checking project Re:Check has concluded that after the election in Latvia, politicians not only spread myths about stolen votes but also misled the public on other issues.
As after many previous elections, claims were heard in Latvia this time about allegedly stolen votes and manipulation of the results. These claims were examined by Re:Check, a fact-checking project run by the Re:Baltica center.
Re:Check concluded that myths about election fraud were not the only way politicians misled the public. The project points to two other issues on which inaccurate statements were made.
First, politicians exaggerated the turnout of Latvian voters in comparison with other European countries. Second, they overstated the position of their own party in terms of membership numbers.
The claims made in public therefore diverged from the facts not only on the fairness of the vote count, but also on voter engagement and the size of political parties.
