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HARRISBURG — Since 2020, when former President Donald Trump and his allies spread conspiracy theories that the presidential election had been stolen, such falsehoods have become a prevalent feature of U.S. elections.
That’s especially true in swing states like Pennsylvania. And this year, with Trump on the ballot once again, disinformation, misconceptions, and simple confusion about the commonwealth’s election processes are once again circulating widely.
Sometimes, familiar theories reemerge. Other times, new issues pop up and gain traction. Here are five of the prominent false or misleading claims that are circulating right now, and the facts you need to know:
No. Pennsylvania’s mail voting laws are set up in a way that makes slow results likelier than in other states — though county election officials say the process will be smoother this year than in the notoriously slow 2020 presidential election.
In 2020, it took four days for Pennsylvania to count enough ballots that the election could be called by news outlets. It was the decisive state in confirming Joe Biden’s victory, which means it had the whole country waiting.
Counting took that long for several reasons.
The commonwealth had...
Allegations of stolen valor and professional misrepresentation have surfaced against Cocoa resident Gary Farmer Jr. (also known as Alden Farmer, Alden Farmer Jr., Gary Farmer, and Gary Farmer Jr.)....