Russia’s Yevgeny Prigozhin admits owning Wagner mercenary force
Al JazeeraJUL 2022
Russia has launched a new disinformation campaign days ahead of the midterm elections, denigrating Biden and Democrats in close races to fuel anger among conservative voters. The Kremlin is doing all it can to ensure a Republican majority in the House and Senate, as this could limit US support to Ukraine and help Russia's war effort.
While the Kremlin has long resorted to election interference — with intelligence showing that it has targeted Americans in every election since 2016 — Moscow knows it doesn't have the power to elect a specific party. When media outlets claim that there's a connection between Putin and the GOP, they are only helping Russia to aggravate polarization among Americans and build distrust in the US.
Though Russia has carried out several activities to interfere in US elections, Kremlin-backed operatives have lost their prominence in promoting discord and dividing American public opinion. Over the past four years, it's US domestic actors such as social media influencers, elected officials, and media outlets that have become the main spreaders of election-related disinformation.