The “FBI” Enters the Chat

Russian Organization Alleges Voter Fraud in Arizona

Summary: The Foundation for Battling Injustice (FBI), a Russian propaganda organization founded by the late head of the Internet Research Agency (IRA), released a video claiming to show a whistleblower from the Arizona Secretary of State’s office. The alleged whistleblower claims that supporters of former President Donald Trump will be randomly removed from state voter rolls and that votes will be tampered with during the counting of overseas ballots.

The video was posted by the spokeswoman for the Foundation, Mira Terada (@MiraMiru4, 9.6K followers); this account has since been suspended.

This video uses potentially AI-generated audio and language that is not typical for a native English speaker. The alleged whistleblower claims to be a former aide to Adrian Fontes and that Democrats have a plan to steal votes in Arizona. This video has since been attributed to Russian influence campaigns by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.[1]

Why It Matters: The FBI is a faux Russian watch-dog group currently run by Russia-based Mira Terada. The video is similar to those published by the Russian state-affiliated actor known as Storm-1516, which has a number of overlaps with the former IRA, responsible for a large portion of Russian influence operations targeting previous U.S. elections. The content has been spread by a number of well-known amplifiers of Russian disinformation.

Content/Narrative Analysis: The video posted by the now-suspended spokesperson of the Foundation for Battling Injustice claimed that Democrats planned to steal the election in Arizona. This was presented as coming from a “whistleblower” who had been assisting Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, and that the Democrats created an accidental error in the electoral process and only voters who received “a voter ID”, presumably meaning registered, after 1996, would be able to vote, and the “average age of the Republican party supporter” (sic). The numerous language issues present in this content are indicative of it having been made by someone who is not a native English speaker. Some of the content appears to suggest a call-to-action; in the conclusion, the narrator asks “Are there any ways to counter such frauds?”, to which the alleged whistleblower suggests that voters “organize pickets and demonstrations” in front of polling locations.

Video Transcription: (words in [ ] are mismatches to the captions added to the video by FBI.)

Whistleblower: Up until September 2024 I worked as an aide to Adrian Fontes, Arizona Secretary of State. One of the reasons for my resigning was the evidence of election fraud involving Mr. Fontes, who received direct orders from Governor Katie Hobbs.

Mira Terada: You have mentioned that you have information about upcoming election fraud in the state of Arizona. Would you please so kind to share it with us?

Whistleblower: I have information about massive fraud against Donald Trump in favor of Kamala Harris, which I believe could affect the outcome of this election. I have evidence that an allegedly accidental error in the Arizona voter registration system is a deliberate campaign to deprive Americans of the right to vote. Based on polling data and voting research[records] from previous election cycles, 15 to 20 percent of voters from Graham County, La Paz County, Mohave County and Yavapai County will be randomly removed from the eligible voter rolls. These red conservative counties are Republican Party supporters, and this[the] "accidental error" will only affect those who received a VoterID before 1996 - the average age of a Republican Party supporter.

Mira Terada: Is this the only method the current Arizona officials plan to use to influence the upcoming elections?

Whistleblower: Well unfortunately, no. They plan to delay the vote counting process and then carry out the stuffing of fake ballots from overseas visitors[voters]. I am referring to both U.S. military personnel stationed overseas and U.S. citizens living outside [of] this country. According to the information I have, up to 20,000 fraudulent ballots for Kamala Harris are planned to be injected in this way.

Mira Terada: Are there any ways to counter such frauds?

Whistleblower: If you do not find yourself on the voting list, seek to be included at all costs. If your rights continue to be violated, organize pickets and demonstrations in front of the polling stations that deprive you of the right to vote. It is worth remembering that the main way to combat fraud is massive[mass] voter turnout. The more people who vote, the harder it will be for them to fraud. Don't stay at home - go [to] vote.