Published 06:12 IST, November 4th 2020
US Election 2020: New York investigates mysterious robocalls urging voters to 'stay home'
While the US citizens began voting, the FBI started investigating mysterious robocalls urging people across the country to stay home on election day.
- World News
- 2 min read
While the US citizens began voting, the FBI started investigating mysterious robocalls urging people across the country to stay home on election day. According to BBC, millions of voters have received automated calls asking them to “stay safe and stay home”. New York Attorney General Letitia James, on November 3, also said that her office is actively investigating allegations regarding the robocalls, spreading disinformation.
James said, “Voting is a cornerstone of our democracy. Attempts to hinder voters from exercising their right to cast their ballots are disheartening, disturbing and wrong. What''s more is that it is illegal and will not be tolerated”.
The organ of the calls remain unclear and some have not specially mentioned voting. However, James said that every voter must be able to exercise his/her fundamental right to vote without being harassed, coerced of intimate. She said that the US has a history of free and fair elections and “this election will be no different”. “Voters should be rest assured that voting is safe and secure, and they should exercise their fundamental right to vote in confidence,” James said, while also adding that state leaders across the nation are working hard to protecting the right to vote.
The call reportedly says, “Hello. This is just a test call. Time to stay home. Stay safe and stay home”. This call has been doing rounds for almost a year, however, on Tuesday it became one of the biggest spam calls in the country. Several US officials have raised concerns over robocalls in the key battleground state Michigan, including one urging residents in the city of Flint to “vote tomorrow” because of long queues.
‘Notice and cure’ law
Meanwhile, earlier this week, the office of the Attorney General had issued subpoenas to investigate the source of such robocalls allegedly spreading disinformation. Additionally, the NY Attorney General had also issued an alert on New Yorkers who voted by absentee ballot to inform them of their rights under New York’s state’s new “notice and cure” law. The law states that voters must be notified if their absentee ballots are being rejected for certain errors they might have made in filling out their ballots.
"With the record number of first-time absentee ballots, we hope this information proves useful to voters who may need to fix an inadvertent error with their ballots," James said.
(With inputs from PTI)
Updated 06:11 IST, November 4th 2020
