Election Alert Issued After Voter Receives Bogus Poll Change Text

OKLAHOMA CITY - State election officials issued an urgent alert to voters today after a bogus text message was received telling a voter their polling place had changed. A complaint about the text has been referred by election officials to law enforcement.

State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax revealed that the text message falsely advised the voter that her polling place had changed, then asked the voter to reply to the text to confirm her name. It then provided a phone number to call to be removed from the notification list. The phone number provided in the text message is reportedly for a male escort service.

“Disinformation about the voting process is a real threat. Voters should be very cautious about phone calls, emails, social media posts and text messages containing false information about elections – and report suspicious communications to election officials immediately,” Ziriax said.

Polling place changes are rare in Oklahoma, and when they occur affected voters are notified by the County Election Board through the U.S. Mail. “Election officials will never contact you by text message to tell you your polling place has changed,” Ziriax added.

Voters should use the OK Voter Portal on the State Election Board’s website, located at https://www.ok.gov/elections/OVP.html, or contact their county election board to find or verify their polling place.