Tracking Trends from Real411: Impact of Mis- and Disinformation in the 2024 National and Provincial Elections in South Africa

The interim report presented to the Electoral Commission by Media Monitoring Africa on the Real411 public complaints platform, which the two bodies have run jointly since 2019. It records roughly 200 complaints during the election period at the time of writing, of which 47% were assessed as mis- or disinformation, up from about 41% during 2021 Covid-19 monitoring. X carried 63% of all complaints and 68% of the content found to be disinformation, followed by TikTok and WhatsApp; X was invited to the framework of cooperation with the commission but did not join. The report groups the false content into four types: claims about electoral processes, claims about parties and candidates, claims about election results, and content intended to undermine the credibility of the Electoral Commission and its commissioners.