POLOKWANE – As the November 4 local government election approaches, social media feeds are flooding with political content. But alongside party manifestos and campaign promises, there is a growing wave of misinformation designed to confuse, anger, or mislead voters.

ALSO READ: November election: What the parties are promising Polokwane

Election season always brings a surge in misleading content. Some of it is recycled footage from years ago, presented as breaking news. Some is genuine content twisted out of context.

Increasingly, some is entirely fabricated by artificial intelligence deepfake videos, cloned voices, and fake images that look incredibly real.

To help you protect yourself and make informed choices at the ballot box, here are three tips from fact-checking organisation Africa Check:

1. Trace the source

Before you trust a post, ask a basic question: Who put this out there, and do they have a history of telling the truth?

If the information comes from a page you have never heard of, or an anonymous account with no track record, treat it with suspicion. A major political scandal or sudden policy shift will never be reported by just one obscure account. If the claim is real, credible news outlets will be covering it. If you can’t find it anywhere else, don’t believe it.

2. Inspect the visuals

Images and videos are powerful tools for spreading lies, but they often leave clues.

• For photos: Try a reverse image search. This can reveal if a picture was taken years ago, in a different country, or at an entirely unrelated event. For example, a photo of a massive crowd might actually be from a music festival, not a political rally.
• For video and audio: AI-generated media often has subtle flaws. Watch for unnatural facial movements, weird blinking, mismatched lighting, or voices that sound slightly robotic or flat. No single check catches everything, but looking closely can stop you from falling for a fake.

3. Pause before you react

Misinformation is designed to travel fast, and it does so most effectively by triggering a strong emotional reaction.

If a post sparks shock, fear, or anger, pause and ask whether it was designed to provoke exactly that reaction. Take a breath, check the facts, and decide whether the content is genuinely worth sharing.

With 37 political formations contesting in Polokwane, the competition for your attention and your vote is fierce. False claims about candidates, fake images, or manipulated videos can influence how communities vote.

By taking a few extra seconds to verify what you see online, you can help keep this election season honest and ensure your vote is based on facts.

For more fact-checks and spotting election misinformation from Africa Check, click here.