Misinformation’s curious catalyst: long lines at the ballot box

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Misinformation has become a significant concern in the United States today, in part because it has the potential to distort the perceptions of election integrity. 

This was especially clear in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, when false claims about voting systems circulated widely, undermining public trust and contributing to the unrest leading up to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

Many have offered up ideas for how to combat misinformation, with limited success. And according to new research, there may be less obvious factors contributing to its spread, which require a much more holistic approach.

Long voting lines contribute to the spread of misinformation

Long waits on Election Day have been shown to deter voters from participating in the democratic process. This alone is a major concern. 

Now, according to new research, it’s becoming clear that areas of the country with longer voting lines not only have the lower level of confidence in the voting process — they are also seeing an increase in the spread of misinformation, as a result.

Even more concerning is that these effects are disproportionately concentrated in minority communities, which already face barriers to political participation. This suggests that operational inefficiencies not only create logistical challenges but also erode trust in the electoral process, particularly among vulnerable populations.

Long voting lines often stem from poor planning and inadequate resource allocation. Insufficient voting machines, poll workers, or poll books can create significant delays and disenfranchise voters. From a queuing perspective, the problem arises when the number of voters arriving exceeds the capacity of polling resources to process them. The greater this imbalance, the longer the lines.

Unfortunately, voting resources are frequently allocated using overly simplistic methods, such as distributing machines proportional to the number of registered voters, which can result in uneven wait times across counties. While more sophisticated methods for resource allocation exist, election officials need to adopt such scientifically proven models to optimize the distribution of voting resources. Unfortunately, many jurisdictions struggle to implement these solutions due to limited funding and personnel.

Unfortunately, these long waits at the polls often lead to frustration and cynicism, making voters more receptive to false narratives, especially those questioning election legitimacy.

Using smartphone location data and geotagged posts from Reddit, our research team tracked county-level voting wait times and quantified the prevalence of political misinformation around the 2016 election nationwide. The findings revealed that counties that experienced longer voting lines in the election saw a significant increase in the sharing of political misinformation on social media in the months following the election.

What’s more, the impact of long wait times on the spread of fake news increases as the proportion of racial minorities in a county rises. For example, in a county where 20% of the population consists of racial minorities, a 10-percentage-point increase in voters experiencing long waits correlates with a 38.3% increase in fake news posts, relative to the average. In a county with 50% racial minorities, that same scenario leads to a staggering 333.8% increase in misinformation. The study also highlights distinct variations across racial groups, with Black and Asian communities experiencing particularly strong effects.

Combating misinformation through efficient voting operations

The implications of these findings are troubling. 

Long voting lines are not just a matter of inconvenience — they have far-reaching effects on voter confidence and the spread of misinformation. 

While much attention has been given to combating fake news through content moderation on social media platforms, this research highlights the need for a more holistic approach. Election administration itself may play a crucial role in mitigating the spread of misinformation by improving the efficiency of voting operations.

To address these challenges, election officials must prioritize better resource allocation at polling stations, especially in minority communities. 

Scientific models and simulation techniques for optimizing voting processes should be implemented more widely, rather than relying on outdated and simplistic methods. 

By improving the efficiency of polling operations, we can not only enhance voter convenience but also strengthen trust in the electoral process, fortifying democracy against the corrosive effects of fake news.

This is adapted from “The Queue-rious Case of Misinformation: Voting Wait Time and Spread of Fake News,” by professor Mai Feng of the University of Iowa; professor Jingyi Sun of the Stevens Institute of Technology; and Yang.