PolygraphElection 2026
Podcast talk of voter fraud has more than doubled since summer. 55% of it comes from the long tail: shows too small to make any chart.
We counted 6,816 episodes on 2,106 English-language podcasts that used one of six phrases about election fraud between July 27 and October 28, 2026.
Polygraph
The count
1,013 podcast episodes used a fraud phrase in the week of October 19, about 2.7 times the summer average of 380 a week.
Each square is one episode that said “voter fraud,” “election fraud,” “rigged election,” “stolen election,” “illegal voting” or “noncitizen voting,” stacked by the week it came out.
55% of these episodes came from the long tail: podcasts too small to make any Apple Podcasts chart. But they carry only about 4% of the estimated audience.
The dark squares are the long tail. Each long-tail show reaches few people, so together they make most of the episodes and little of the audience: under a fifth under any way of weighing it. More in Who hears it, below.
3,750 episodes came from the 1,325 long-tail shows that don’t chart.
The 190 shows near the top of the charts produced 812.
2,146 episodes came from right-leaning podcasts and 842 from left-leaning ones, among shows with a lean rating.
Most small shows have no rating, and a mention is not an endorsement: NPR’s hourly newscast is in these counts, and so are hosts rebutting the claims.
56% of the episodes came from shows whose first category on Apple Podcasts is News, and 14% from Commentary.
About one in six came from shows filed under something else, including Comedy, Education, Business and Religion.
The count
Episodes that used a fraud phrase, by week published
Each square is one episode · 6,816 episodes
Episodes by week, shaded by the show’s size
Each square is one episode · 6,816 episodes
Episodes by the show’s size
Each square is one episode · 6,816 episodes
Episodes by the show’s political lean
Each square is one episode · 6,816 episodes
Episodes by the category the show chose
Each square is one episode · 6,816 episodes
Source: Particle
Host · asserting it
…seven non-citizens have now been charged for unlawfully voting in federal elections or falsely claiming United States citizenship. That just keeps happening.”
Bongino Report Early Edition with Evita“They Said They'd Never Go Back! | Episode 371”RightSep 16, 2026
Claim: Noncitizens are voting in large numbers
How it’s growing
The rise is broad. Each week more podcasts use the phrases, more of them are small, and this week is running ahead of last week’s record.
How it’s growing
778 episodes used a phrase from Monday to Wednesday this week, 3.9 times the summer average of 202 for those days.
The record before this week was 551, set one week earlier.
7.6× as many episodes said “rigged election” this Monday to Wednesday as on those days in an average summer week: 110.
“Illegal voting” is up 5.5 times and “voter fraud” 4.9 times. “Stolen election,” the phrase most tied to 2020, is up the least, 1.9 times.
632 podcasts used a phrase in the week of October 19, up from 274 in the last week of July.
More shows are joining, not just the same shows talking more.
2,106 different podcasts have used a phrase since July 27.
In October, about 184 shows a week used one for the first time.
63% of these episodes came from the long tail by mid-October, up from 46% in the last week of July.
The newcomers are long-tail shows, on no Apple chart.
How it’s growing
Episodes published Monday to Wednesday, each week
Episodes per week · the same three days every week, so this week compares fairly with the rest
Each phrase, Monday to Wednesday, each week
Episodes per week · each label is this week against the summer average for the same days
Podcasts that used a phrase, each week
Distinct shows per week · full weeks only
Podcasts that have used a phrase since July 27
Running total of distinct shows, through October 28
Share of each week’s episodes from the long tail
Share of episodes from shows on no Apple chart · full weeks only
Source: Particle
Host · reporting it
Trump's Department of Homeland Security is beginning what they call a surge, a surge of voter fraud investigations across nine states.”
Erin Burnett OutFront“Speaker Johnson Lashes Out at Questions on Prolonged Iran War”Leans leftSep 2, 2026
Claim: Homeland Security is running a surge of voter fraud investigations in nine states
The words
Six phrases make up the count. They are not used the same way: some are far more common, and some belong more to one side.
The words
3,833 episodes said “voter fraud,” 56% of all the episodes in the count. No other phrase comes close.
“Election fraud” is second, and the two together make most of every week. The week of October 19 was the largest for both. “Noncitizen voting” came up in 52 episodes in all, too few to see at this scale. Hover or tap a week for its numbers.
7.6× as many “rigged election” episodes this Monday to Wednesday as the summer average for those days, the fastest rise of the six.
Each line is a phrase against its own summer average, so a small phrase and a big one share one scale. “Rigged election” went from 14.5 episodes on an average summer Monday to Wednesday to 110. Next is “illegal voting” at 5.5×. “Noncitizen voting” averaged under one episode in those summer days, so its line jumps on a handful.
2 weeks had the largest estimated audience, and each had a Joe Rogan Experience episode.
Weigh each episode by the size of its show and the weeks look different. Those episodes used a phrase in passing during long interviews, but one of them reaches more people than hundreds of small shows. The week of Oct 19 had the most episodes, 1,013, but a smaller audience. The phrases are shown together: most are too thin to weigh week by week. Use the toggle to switch back to episodes.
4.1:1 right-leaning episodes said “stolen election” for every left-leaning one, the most lopsided of the six. Across all six: 2.1:1.
Each hollow dot is a phrase’s balance among episodes from shows with a lean rating. Most phrases sit right of even; “noncitizen voting” is the one on the left.
2.1:1 by episodes, right-leaning to left-leaning. By estimated audience, the two sides are roughly even.
Weigh each episode by the size of its show and most arrows move left, toward even. “Stolen election” stays right-leaning either way. The whiskers show the range under other ways of weighing audience.
1.5:1 right-leaning episodes said “rigged election” for every left-leaning one. By estimated audience it tips left, 1.5:1 the other way.
It crosses even under every way of weighing audience we tried.
92% of the estimated audience for “noncitizen voting” came from left-leaning shows, most of it from one news show.
Up First from NPR carried 59% of it. The phrase came up in only 52 episodes, so one big show decides its balance. A mention is not an endorsement: who says a phrase, and how, is in the next section.
The words
Episodes per week, by phrase
Stacked · an episode with two phrases counts in both · the last week is Oct 26–28 only
Each phrase against its summer average
Monday-to-Wednesday episodes each week, divided by the Jul 27 – Sep 6 average for those days · 1× is the summer average
Estimated audience per week, all six phrases
Millions of estimated listener-exposures · each episode weighed by its show’s size · the last week is Oct 26–28 only
Right-leaning to left-leaning, by phrase
Right-leaning per left-leaning, rated episodes only · log scale · estimated audience weighs each episode by its show’s size
Right-leaning to left-leaning, by episodes and by audience
Right-leaning per left-leaning, rated episodes only · log scale · estimated audience weighs each episode by its show’s size
“Rigged election” crosses to the left by audience
Right-leaning per left-leaning, rated episodes only · log scale · estimated audience weighs each episode by its show’s size
“Noncitizen voting” sits far left by audience
Right-leaning per left-leaning, rated episodes only · log scale · estimated audience weighs each episode by its show’s size
Source: Particle (episodes, lean ratings)
Host · asserting it
…the 2020 presidential election was stolen by Democrats with the backing of China and the CCP Chinese Communist Party.”
Wayne Allyn Root’s WAR Zone Audio Hours“Wayne Allyn Root’s WAR Zone 10-21-26”Far rightOct 22, 2026
Claim: The 2020 election was won by fraud
Who hears it
An episode on a big show reaches far more people than one on a small show. Estimated audience weighs each episode by its show’s size, so the count can be read the other way: by how many people the phrases may have reached.
Episodes against estimated audience
Share of all episodes · all six phrases · Jul 27 to Oct 28
By show size
By the show’s lean
Source: Particle
4% of the estimated audience came from the long tail, which made 55% of the episodes.
80% of it came from the 190 shows near the top of the charts, which made 12% of the episodes.
6 shows carried half the estimated audience for “voter fraud,” out of 1,459 that said it.
Who’s saying it
A count of phrases can’t say who believes what, so Polygraph transcribed a random sample of these moments from each show’s own audio and sorted every statement about fraud in them. Each one is sorted by who said it and how they treated the claim: asserting it, reporting it or rebutting it.
Who’s saying it
65% of fraud statements on right-leaning shows assert it, Polygraph’s analysis found. On the left: 13%.
That is 442 of 682 statements on the right and 88 of 671 on the left, counting everyone on air: hosts, guests, callers and the clips a show plays.
60% of fraud statements on left-leaning shows rebut it. On the right: 8%.
Both sides also report claims without taking a side, 21% of statements on the right and 20% on the left.
79% of statements on far-right shows assert fraud, against 60% on right and 61% on leans-right shows.
On leans-left and left shows it was 11% and 15%. The pool had one far-left segment, which is not shown.
63% of guests’ statements on right-leaning shows assert it, about the same as hosts’ (66%). On the left, guests rebut it 61% of the time and hosts 66%.
Speaker labels are automated, and the main voice is sometimes the guest. Clips a show plays are left out of this view.
Who’s saying it
Share of fraud statements that assert it, by side
Each square is one statement · 1,353 statements in 437 sampled segments
How every statement treated the claim, by side
Each square is one statement · 1,353 statements in 437 sampled segments
Share of statements that assert fraud, by the show’s lean
Each square is 1% of that lean’s statements · everyone on air · n under each grid
Who on air says it: hosts and guests, by side
Each square is 1% of that group’s statements · speaker labels are automated
Source: Particle (episodes, lean ratings)
Guest · asserting it
…that's a federal crime. It's not getting in the way of the state conducting an election, and why would that suppress the vote unless you're a foreign national and you plan to be voting.”
The John Kobylt Show“Operation Protect The Vote (10/19)”Leans rightOct 20, 2026
Claim: Noncitizens are voting in large numbers
Claims that travel
Polygraph’s analysis grouped the 1,338 claims in these statements by meaning. 109 of the 363 groups came up on more than one show. Here is how the eight that reached the most shows moved from show to show.
Claims that travel
109 claims turned up on more than one show in our sample. These 8 travelled furthest.
The one that reached the most shows, that noncitizens are voting in large numbers, came up on 75. Hover over or tap a mark for the show, who said it and the quote.
68% of right-leaning episodes that said noncitizens are voting in large numbers asserted it. On the left, 77% rebutted it.
Both sides talk about it: 41 right-leaning episodes and 52 left-leaning ones, on 75 shows in all.
10 right-leaning shows in our sample took up the claim of voter fraud and vouching abuse in Minnesota, and none rebutted it.
It went from The Mark Simone Show on Aug 12 to LARRY with Larry O'Connor on Oct 27, one show after another, all on the right.
8 left-leaning shows took up Nevada’s 16,000 flagged noncitizen voters, 8 of 9 episodes to rebut it. No right-leaning show in our sample made the claim.
The rebuttal travels too: from The Lead with Jake Tapper on Aug 22 to Letters from an American on Oct 27.
Claims that travel
The 8 claims that reached the most shows, by date
One mark per sampled episode that made the claim · first seen in our sample, which starts Jul 27, not where a claim began · 437 segments
Noncitizens are voting in large numbers: right-leaning and left-leaning shows
One mark per sampled episode that made the claim · first seen in our sample, which starts Jul 27, not where a claim began · 437 segments
Fraud and vouching abuse in Minnesota: each show, in the order it took up the claim
One mark per sampled episode that made the claim · first seen in our sample, which starts Jul 27, not where a claim began · 437 segments
Nevada’s 16,000 flagged noncitizen voters: each show, in the order it took up the claim
One mark per sampled episode that made the claim · first seen in our sample, which starts Jul 27, not where a claim began · 437 segments
Source: Particle (episodes, lean ratings)
The 8 claims as a table
| Claim | Shows | Right-leaning | Left-leaning | First in our sample | Statements: asserts / reports / rebuts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noncitizens are voting in large numbers | 75 | 36 | 39 | The Arena with Kasie Hunt, Jul 28 | 48 / 22 / 71 |
| Voter fraud is widespread | 63 | 20 | 43 | The Tony Kinnett Cast, Jul 29 | 14 / 20 / 84 |
| The 2020 election was won by fraud | 60 | 19 | 41 | Brian Tyler Cohen, Jul 27 | 35 / 12 / 52 |
| Democrats win elections through fraud | 26 | 18 | 8 | "TNN Live!", Jul 27 | 23 / 3 / 7 |
| Noncitizens are voting in California | 24 | 13 | 11 | On with Kara Swisher, Aug 10 | 9 / 23 / 9 |
| Mail ballots invite fraud | 22 | 7 | 15 | The Oath and The Office, Aug 6 | 9 / 8 / 23 |
| Fraud and vouching abuse in Minnesota | 10 | 10 | 0 | The Mark Simone Show, Aug 12 | 17 / 7 / 0 |
| Nevada flagged 16,000 noncitizen voters | 8 | 0 | 8 | The Lead with Jake Tapper, Aug 22 | 0 / 3 / 9 |
From 437 randomly sampled segments. First means first in our sample, which starts July 27, not where a claim began. Lean is the show’s rating. Source: Particle.
Host · rebutting it
…they thought there were 16,000 non-citizens illegally registered. They did a big follow-up. it turned out 185. not 16,000. They did another follow-up. turned out it wasn't 185. it was zero. zero.”
Real Time with Bill Maher“Ep. #746: Karoline Leavitt, Gov. Andy Beshear, Steve Hilton”Leans leftOct 24, 2026
Claim: Nevada flagged 16,000 noncitizen voters
Every card in one place
Each number is a short video and a square image, sized for social posts. Share it as a video, an image or text.
Moments
More quotes from the transcribed sample, from our transcript of each show’s own audio, with who said it and how they treated the claim. Play the clip, or share it as an image or text.
Host · asserting it
“Before we had automatic registration, you'd have 102, 104% turnout in Minneapolis somehow.”
The Matt Gaetz Show“Matt Gaetz Show - Rep. Byron Donalds, Michael Holmstrom, Rich Baris, Evan Power”RightSep 23, 2026
Claim: Fraud and vouching abuse in Minnesota
Host · rebutting it
“Trump's attorneys backed away from the claims. They either withdrew or lost all but one of the 60 lawsuits they brought over the election.”
Letters from an American“Always a Lie”LeftAug 2, 2026
Claim: The 2020 election was won by fraud
Guest · rebutting it
“…non-citizen voting is relatively rare and statistically insignificant. It's not something that is altering election results”
Behind the Bastards“It Could Happen Here Weekly 252”LeftOct 3, 2026
Claim: Noncitizens are voting in large numbers
The shows
The four podcasts in each size group that used the phrases in the most episodes.
Near the top of the charts
190 shows · 812 episodes
Charting
591 shows · 2,254 episodes
Long tail: on no chart
1,325 shows · 3,750 episodes
What a count can’t tell us
A count of phrases is not a count of false claims. The same words come up when a host repeats a claim, when a reporter describes one and when a guest knocks one down.
The sample above says who made a claim and how they treated it. It does not say whether the claim is true: Polygraph has not yet checked the sampled claims against the record, and those results will follow.