Fabricated CNN Election Results Image Spreads Ahead of 2024 Election
A digitally fabricated image purporting to show CNN broadcasting Texas election results before Election Day circulated widely on social media platforms in early November 2024, fueling false claims that the election was rigged. CNN confirmed the image never aired on any of its platforms.
What happened
An image purporting to show CNN broadcasting Texas 2024 presidential election results before Election Day, with Harris at 51.8 percent and Trump at 45.7 percent with 16 percent of votes counted, spread across X, Instagram, Threads and other platforms starting November 2, 2024.
Posts using the image fueled claims that the election was rigged in advance to benefit Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, with users questioning how CNN could have results before polls opened on November 5.
Reported impact
The fabricated image spread widely on X's "Election Integrity Community" and other platforms, with multiple users amplifying false claims of election rigging based on the fake graphic.
Index analysis
The fake graphic resembled CNN's actual "key race alert" designs used in the 2020 presidential election and 2022 midterms, but showed signs of digital editing including a green ticker for "estimated vote" that did not match the network's past design elements.
Governance controls
CNN's senior vice president of communications Emily Kuhn confirmed on November 4 that the image was "completely fabricated and manipulated" and "never aired on any CNN platform," with the network posting a matching statement on X.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.