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Russian interference in the 2024 United States elections

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2024 U.S. presidential election
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The Russian government has interfered in the 2024 United States elections through disinformation and propaganda campaigns[1] aimed at damaging Joe Biden and other Democrats, and boosting the candidacy of Donald Trump and other candidates who support isolationism and undercutting support for Ukraine aid and NATO.[2][3][4][5] The efforts follow the previous pattern of spreading disinformation through fake social media accounts and right-wing YouTube channels[6] in order to divide American society and foster anti-Americanism.[7][8] On September 4, the Department of Justice indicted members of Tenet Media for having received $10 million as part of a covert Russian influence operation to co-opt American right-wing influencers to espouse pro-Russian content and conspiracy theories.[9]

Background

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Russia has previously interfered with the 2016, 2018, and 2020 United States elections.

The Russian government's goals in 2016 were to sabotage the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton, boost the presidential campaign of Donald Trump, and increase political and social discord in the United States. According to the U.S. intelligence community, the operation—code named Project Lakhta[10][11]—was ordered directly by Russian president Vladimir Putin.[12][13] The "hacking and disinformation campaign" to damage Clinton and help Trump became the "core of the scandal known as Russiagate".[14] The 448-page Mueller Report, made public in April 2019, examined over 200 contacts between the Trump campaign and Russian officials but concluded that there was insufficient evidence to bring specific "conspiracy" or "coordination" charges against Trump or his associates.

The United States Intelligence Community concluded in early 2018 that the Russian government was continuing the interference it started during the 2016 elections and was attempting to influence the 2018 mid-term elections by generating discord through social media. Primaries for candidates of parties began in some states in March and would continue through September.[15] The leaders of intelligence agencies noted that Russia is spreading disinformation through fake social media accounts in order to divide American society and foster anti-Americanism.[7][8] In 2022, it was reported that a Federal Election Commission investigation had found that American Ethane Company, which had received investments from Russian oligarchs, had contributed Russian money to US political candidates in the 2018 midterm elections, largely in Louisiana. FEC commissioners Ellen Weintraub and Shana M. Broussard criticized the Republicans in the FEC for a "slap on the wrist" civil penalty.[16]

Russian interference in the 2020 United States elections was a matter of concern at the highest level of national security within the United States government, in addition to the computer and social media industries.[17][18] In February and August 2020, United States Intelligence Community (USIC) experts warned members of Congress that Russia was interfering in the 2020 presidential election in then-President Donald Trump's favor.[19][20][21] USIC analysis released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) in March 2021 found that proxies of Russian intelligence promoted and laundered misleading or unsubstantiated narratives about Joe Biden "to US media organizations, US officials, and prominent US individuals, including some close to former President Trump and his administration."[22][23][24] The New York Times reported in May 2021 that federal investigators in Brooklyn began a criminal investigation late in the Trump administration into possible efforts by several current and former Ukrainian officials to spread unsubstantiated allegations about corruption by Joe Biden, including whether they had used Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani as a channel.[25]

Analysis

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Senior officials with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence describe Russia's 2024 efforts as "more sophisticated than in prior election cycles".[26] Rather than simply relying on fake accounts, Russian tactics involve co-opting real American right-wing influencers to spread pro-Kremlin propaganda narratives to Americans.[9]

Efforts to interfere with the 2024 United States elections

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According to disinformation experts and intelligence agencies, Russia spread disinformation ahead of the 2024 election to damage Joe Biden and Democrats, boost candidates supporting isolationism, and undercut support for Ukraine aid and NATO.[2][3] American intelligence agencies have assessed that Russia prefers Trump to win the election, viewing him as more skeptical of U.S. support for Ukraine.[4][5]

In August 2024, the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided the homes of former United Nations weapons inspector Scott Ritter and political advisor Dimitri Simes for their connections to Russian state media.[27] Indictments against Dimitri Simes and his wife Anastasia Simes were announced in early September. The two were charged with laundering funds and violating sanctions in order to benefit the state-controlled broadcaster Channel One Russia, as well as violating sanctions to benefit a Russian oligarch.[28][29][30]

On September 4, 2024, the United States publicly accused Russia of interfering in the 2024 election and announced several steps to combat Russian influence including sanctions, indictments, and seizing of Doppelganger-linked web domains used to spread propaganda and disinformation. Two employees of the Russian state-owned propaganda network RT were indicted for operating a money laundering operation to support the creation and distribution of propaganda videos on American social media.[4][5][31][32] This prompted YouTube to remove several channels,[6][33] and Tenet Media, a company implicated in the affair, abruptly shut down.[34]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Myers, Steven Lee; Barnes, Julian E. (July 10, 2024). "U.S. and Allies Take Aim at Covert Russian Information Campaign". The New York Times.
  2. ^ a b De Luce, Dan (February 26, 2024). "Russia's 2024 election interference has already begun". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 1, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Barnes, Julian E.; Sanger, David E. (March 27, 2024). "Russia Amps Up Online Campaign Against Ukraine Before U.S. Elections". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 2, 2024. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Barnes, Julian E.; Thrush, Glenn; Myers, Steven Lee (September 4, 2024). "U.S. Announces Plan to Counter Russian Influence Ahead of 2024 Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Roebuck, Jeremy (September 4, 2024). "Feds in Philly announce takedown of Russian-backed propaganda effort aimed at influencing U.S. presidential vote". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  6. ^ a b De Vynck, Gerrit (September 6, 2024). "YouTube takes down right-wing channels linked to DOJ Russia indictments". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  7. ^ a b Riechmann, Deb (February 13, 2018). "Intelligence chiefs say they're seeing signs of Russian meddling in America's upcoming midterm elections". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on February 14, 2018. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Sheth, Sonam (February 13, 2018). "Top intelligence chiefs issue a dire warning about the Kremlin's ongoing efforts to influence the US, defend against Trump's attacks on the FBI, and explain what happened with a shady Russian offering dirt on Trump". Business Insider. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
  9. ^ a b Lyngaas, Sean (September 5, 2024). "Russian trolling 2.0: How the Kremlin shifted tactics from its 2016 election strategy". CNN. Archived from the original on September 8, 2024. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
  10. ^ Schick, Nina (2020). Deep Fakes and the Infocalypse. United Kingdom: Monoray. pp. 60–75. ISBN 978-1-913183-52-3.
  11. ^ "Russian Project Lakhta Member Charged with Wire Fraud Conspiracy". justice.gov (Press release). September 10, 2020. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
  12. ^ Ross, Brian; Schwartz, Rhonda; Meek, James Gordon (December 15, 2016). "Officials: Master Spy Vladimir Putin Now Directly Linked to US Hacking". ABC News. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  13. ^ Hosenball, Mark (August 19, 2020). Mohammed, Arshad (ed.). "Factbox: Key findings from Senate inquiry into Russian interference in 2016 U.S. election". Reuters. Washington. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
  14. ^ Rutenberg, Jim (November 2, 2022). "The Untold Story of 'Russiagate' and the Road to War in Ukraine". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  15. ^ Rosenberg, Matthew; Fandos, Nicholas (February 13, 2018). "Russia Sees Midterm Elections as Chance to Sow Fresh Discord, Intelligence Chiefs Warn". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
  16. ^ Friedman, Dan. "Russians used a US firm to funnel funds to GOP in 2018. Dems say the FEC let them get away with it". Mother Jones. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  17. ^ Kroll, Andy (January 17, 2020). "Hackers Are Coming for the 2020 Election — And We're Not Ready". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on January 17, 2020. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
  18. ^ Foer, Franklin (June 2020). "Putin Is Well on His Way to Stealing the Next Election". The Atlantic. ISSN 1072-7825. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
  19. ^ Desiderio, Andrew (March 8, 2020). "Senators say intel officials will give more details on 2020 election interference". Politico. Archived from the original on November 18, 2020.
  20. ^ "Statement by NCSC Director William Evanina: Election Threat Update for the American Public". www.dni.gov. Office of the Director of National Intelligence. August 7, 2020. Archived from the original on November 19, 2020.
  21. ^ Pickrell, Sonam; Sheth, Ryan (August 7, 2020). "US intel community believes Russia wants Biden to lose the 2020 election while China wants him to win". Business Insider. Archived from the original on October 17, 2020. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  22. ^ Cohen, Zachary; Cohen, Marshall; Polantz, Katelyn (March 17, 2021). "US intelligence report says Russia used Trump allies to influence 2020 election with goal of 'denigrating' Biden". CNN. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  23. ^ "READ: ODNI's declassified Intelligence Community assessment of foreign threats to the 2020 US federal elections". CNN. March 16, 2021. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  24. ^ Collinson, Stephen (March 17, 2021). "Analysis: New US intel report shows Russia, Trump and GOP acolytes have same goals". CNN. CNN. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
  25. ^ Rashbaum, William K.; Protess, Ben; Vogel, Kenneth P.; Hong, Nicole (May 27, 2021). "Prosecutors Investigating Whether Ukrainians Meddled in 2020 Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  26. ^ Nakashima, Ellen (September 7, 2024). "Russia's election influence efforts show sophistication, officials say". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved September 7, 2024.
  27. ^ Myers, Steven Lee; Barnes, Julian E. (August 21, 2024). "U.S. Investigating Americans Who Worked With Russian State Television". The New York Times.
  28. ^ Tucker, Eric; Klepper, David (September 5, 2024). "Former 2016 Trump campaign adviser is charged over working for sanctioned Russian TV". Associated Press. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  29. ^ Lynch, Sarah N. (September 5, 2024). "US charges Russian TV contributor Dimitri Simes with sanctions violations". Reuters. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  30. ^ Rabinowitz, Hannah; Lybrand, Holmes (September 5, 2024). "US prosecutors charge Russian-American political pundit of violating sanctions". CNN. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  31. ^ Nakamura, David; Belton, Catherine; Sommer, Will (September 4, 2024). "Justice Dept. charges two Russian media operatives in alleged scheme". Washington Post. Retrieved September 4, 2024.
  32. ^ "US conservative influencers say they are 'victims' of Russian disinformation campaign". The Guardian. September 5, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  33. ^ "YouTube terminating Tenet Media channel after US indictment". Reuters. September 6, 2024. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
  34. ^ Merlan, Anna (September 6, 2024). "Tenet Media shutters after being accused of taking $10 million in covert Kremlin funding". Mother Jones. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
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