In the months leading up to Election Day, the Snopes newsroom fact-checked claims about and from candidates in key races.
Claims by campaigns often exaggerate reality or omit important context to get voters’ attention.
We investigate every rumor with the same level of scrutiny, regardless of how it affects Democrats or Republicans.
The work has required confronting candidates about their lies, sifting through campaign finance records and measuring the credibility of media reports on controversies such as the Alaska Senate race’s alleged ballot-stacking ordeal.
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Looking at Michigan’s competitive Senate race, we found some truth to the claim that Mike Rogers, the Republican candidate, once received millions of dollars from donors who appear in the Epstein files.
But some reports with the accusation omitted key context: Rogers received many of the donations during his 2024 Senate campaign, not during his 2026 campaign, and the donors sent the money through political action committees supporting him, not directly to his campaign.
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We’ve also debunked false claims by campaigns to try to get voters on their side.
For instance, a rumor circulated that Abdul El-Sayed, Rogers’ Democratic opponent in Michigan, supposedly said he believes America deserved the 9/11 attacks. That wasn’t true.
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Candidates’ whereabouts and political histories have also been under scrutiny.
We investigated a claim by a pair of conservative influencers that Democrat James Talarico, a Senate candidate in Texas, supposedly sought treatment at a mental health facility in Ohio while campaigning. Visual evidence showed he was at his home during the in-question period, proving the allegation false.
As a state lawmaker, Talarico’s vote against a bill to prevent foreign entities from buying land in Texas surfaced as a talking point.
Meanwhile, his opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, was under fire for his role in brokering a plea deal for a man accused of child sex abuse. Some people argued the 30-day jail sentence was too lenient.
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The Snopes newsroom will continue monitoring these types of rumors throughout Election Day and after polls close. Even though midterm campaigns are winding down, our commitment to truth-telling isn’t.
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