"Missing 20 Million Votes" Narrative Fuels Election Conspiracy Theory Surge

Following the announcement of the 2024 presidential election results, narratives casting doubt on the vote count began spreading rapidly online. A growing discussion on X claimed that 18-20 million votes were “missing,” with users citing alleged discrepancies in voter turnout compared to 2020. However, as WIRED reported, this gap is simply due to the fact that not all votes had been counted at the time.

 

The Spread of The Narrative

According to PeakMetrics, the number of posts on X surged on the morning of November 6, casting doubt on the legitimacy of the election results and urging Kamala Harris to investigate or demand a recount. By noon, these posts peaked at 94,000 per hour and continued to trend throughout the day. The narrative ranged from hashtags like #donotconcedekamala and phrases like “math ain’t mathing” to specific claims of “missing votes” totaling 18-20 million. This perceived discrepancy between reports of record voter turnout and fewer reported votes compared to 2020—particularly the referenced 18-20 million—began to gain traction among some influential X users, amplifying the narrative further.

The Early Morning Surge

Posts questioning the election count spiked around 2 a.m. ET, shortly after the election was called for President Trump. By 8 a.m. ET, the number of posts per hour had surged to nearly 32,000, with an unusual lack of decline in activity during typical overnight hours. This continuous increase in posts from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. ET reflects the intensity of the narrative or may indicate inauthentic or automated posting behavior driving the discussion.

The Right vs. The Left

Although predominantly left-leaning accounts shared language supporting a recount and citing the “missing” votes, some right-leaning influencers—including Dinesh D’Souza and Benny Johnson—also engaged with the narrative. Right-leaning accounts referenced this speculation to question the legitimacy of the 2020 election, asserting that the 2020 vote count was artificially inflated for President Biden and that today’s “missing votes” for Harris prove a larger electoral manipulation in Biden's favor.

Conclusion

As narratives like the “missing votes” theory spread rapidly, online discourse can quickly become a breeding ground for conspiracy theories. Real-time monitoring, as seen with PeakMetrics, is essential in identifying and analyzing these claims early,