Fact Check

5 Million Uncounted Sanders Ballots Found on Clinton's Email Server

Some amusing fake news holds that nearly 5 million uncounted California electronic ballots were found on Hillary Clinton's private email server by the F.B.I.

Published Sept. 7, 2016

Claim:
Nearly 5 million uncounted California ballots cast for Bernie Sanders were found on Hillary Clinton's private email server by the F.B.I.

Fake news occasionally proves itself to be more amusing than annoying (i.e., actual satire rather than an attempt to fool readers with sensationalist clickbait), and an August 2016 article from the Nevada County Scooper hit that mark — deftly blending political controversies over Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server, suggestions of election fraud, and claims by supporters of rival Bernie Sanders that their candidate had been cheated out of the nomination by a partisan Democratic National Committee into one short article that began:

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton is in hot water again after nearly 5 million uncounted California electronic ballots were found on her email server by the F.B.I. The majority of those ballots cast were by Bernie Sanders supporters.

The election commission has an emergency meeting scheduled for tomorrow morning to discuss a possible vote recount which will include the newly-found ballots.

Ms. Clinton has already come under fire during this election cycle over using her private email server for personal use, including storing and sending classified information with it. There has been a formal investigation, but no charges have been filed in that case. Some of the charges are facing several charges.

Alas for those who might wish to believe that some or all of the above is true, the Nevada County Scooper's "Manifesto" notes that the site is all about fake news and satire:

The Scooper is a satirical website is in scope and intent. Sometimes it’s funny; often it is not. We provide fake news and social criticism in a satirical setting. Our intention is not to fool or trick anyone, but obviously it happens. We firmly believe that you can soften a person’s willingness to listen by injecting irony, and yes sometimes humor, into the conversation.

David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994.