As voters cast their ballots on Election Day, some social media users claimed they were being offered money to vote for a particular candidate, an illegal practice.

“I received a text offering me $200 to vote for Kamala Harris,” one person said in a Nov. 4 message. Instagram video saying.

The video showed a screenshot of a text message exchange with the progressive voting advocacy group Turnout the Vote. The conversation began with a text message from Turnout the Vote asking if the person wanted to become a voting ambassador and “earn up to $200.”

(Instagram screenshot)

The video then cuts back to the person saying, “Are you telling me this election isn’t rigged?”

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Although Turnout the Vote supports Harris’ presidential campaign, this publication misinterpreted the group’s paid “voter ambassador” program.

Greta Carnes, spokesperson for Turnout the Vote, said the organization never pays anyone to register to vote, vote in general or vote for a particular candidate. The organization also does not pay people to get another person to register to vote or vote.

Registering to vote or voting is not a prerequisite for someone to become a voter ambassador or receive payment for the position, Carnes said.

Turnout the Vote’s website says voter ambassadors can earn up to $200 “for talking to the people in your life about voting in the November election.”

“We are conducting an organizing effort where our voting ambassadors organize and organize their communities, and because we respect and value the time and value of our team, we offer our ambassadors a stipend,” Carnes said. “Campaigns, parties and political organizations have always paid their field organizers.”

The text message exchange seen in the Instagram post begins with this message from Turnout the Vote: “Hi, this is Sam with Turnout the Vote! We have only 2 days until the election. This is your last chance to join the us as an ambassador of votes”. to make sure everyone knows how important it is to vote for Kamala Harris this fall. It’s completely remote and you can win up to $200.

The person who received the message responded: “Yes.”

Turnout the Vote then sent a link for the person to apply to be a vote ambassador.

The person responded: “Is it legal to offer me compensation for voting a certain way? I just want to make sure I don’t get into any trouble.”

Turnout the Vote responded: “Compensating organizers for their work is important. Compensation is never tied to votes. Good luck!”

Michael Morley, professor of election law at Florida State University, told PolitiFact that he goes against federal law Offer to pay or make a payment to someone to vote, withhold a vote, or vote for or against a particular candidate.

“The main goal is to try to preserve the integrity of the electoral process and ensure that people are free to make decisions for themselves and that election results are not based on money,” Morley said. “That’s a very different concern than hiring people to drive voter turnout.”

Billionaire Elon Musk has been running a daily million-dollar lottery for registered voters in battleground states. raising questions about the legality of such a gift. A Pennsylvania judge ruled November 4 that the draw could continue.

We rate as false the claim that a text message shows Turnout the Vote offering “$200 to vote for Kamala Harris.”