ABC Shows Election Results: Was the Winner Revealed?

WNEP-TV Election Results Error Sparks Theories
Harris Accidentally Shown as Winner
Trump Supporters Claim Fraud on Social Media

A local broadcast has stirred controversy in Pennsylvania after WNEP-TV, an ABC affiliate, mistakenly displayed early election results during their coverage of the Mexican Grand Prix in Formula 1.

The ticker at the bottom of the screen showed Kamala Harris winning in Pennsylvania with 52 percent of the votes, while Donald Trump was listed at 47 percent.

The incident happened on Sunday, just a week before the November 5 election night, when actual results won’t be available yet.

The error quickly sparked conspiracy theories on social media, with numerous Trump supporters jumping in to claim electoral fraud.

ABC Accidentally Shows Election Results

Found this in LinkedIn comments:https://t.co/O2QYvU5ks3

— Chris Hackney (@RealChrisHack) October 30, 2024

“The fraud is already happening,” tweeted one user, reflecting the reaction from Donald Trump’s supporters who have questioned the legitimacy of the election process for months.

WNEP-TV quickly addressed the controversy, explaining that the numbers shown were fictitious and “randomly generated” as part of a technical test.

According to the channel, this kind of testing is a common practice on television to ensure that the result display system functions smoothly on election night.

However, this explanation has not convinced everyone, according to Daily Mail.

Some critics argue that an error of this magnitude fuels perceptions of fraud and undermines the transparency of the election in a key state like Pennsylvania.

In the current race, Donald Trump leads in Pennsylvania by a narrow margin of 0.6 percentage points, according to the Real Clear Politics polling average.

This narrow, volatile margin keeps Pennsylvania at the center of national interest due to its importance as a swing state in this election.

During the 2020 elections, Pennsylvania was a critical battleground, where Biden defeated Trump by a slim margin of 80,555 votes, or 1.17 percent.

Conspiracy Theories Emerge

For Democrats, the recent controversy is part of a planned strategy by Donald Trump and his supporters to cast doubt on the election’s legitimacy.

One person posted on X: “If the same graphics appear after November 5 with the same percentages and vote count, it will be EXTREMELY suspicious. And the media wonders why no one trusts them.”

Another wrote: “ABC is rigging things for the Democratic machine. They should lose their license.”

In a statement, the broadcaster said: “Those numbers should not have appeared on the screen, and it was an error by WNEP.”