• As 4.2 billion people head to the polls this year, misinformation, disinformation, and artificial intelligence (AI) threaten to destabilise democratic processes and election integrity
• EFCSN project seeks to encourage collaboration across fact-checking ecosystem ahead of European Elections
• This cross-border project will allow voters to access reliable information across multiple languages, wide-ranging topic areas, and different political parties, while encouraging collaboration among European fact-checkers and researchers

4.2 billion citizens will head to the polls this year, with up to 400 million of these voters eligible to vote in European Parliamentary Elections alone. 2024 is going to be a vital year for democracy, but with new and evolving threats like AI continually reshaping how we communicate and engage with one another, finding ways to help citizens navigate an increasingly complex digital environment is central to building a democratic, fair, and informed society.

It is against this backdrop that Logically Facts, the fact-checking unit of counter mis- and disinformation pioneers Logically, is collaborating in a project with the European Fact-Checking Standards Network (EFCSN) and a coalition of over 40 fact-checking organisations across Europe to create a comprehensive fact-checking database focused on the 2024 European Parliament Elections, supported by Google.

At a time when misinformation can be a tool of political mobilisation, fact-checking serves as a crucial defence against the manipulation of facts and opinions, providing citizens with access to reliable information. This first-of-its-kind open database seeks to collect and categorise political fact-checks, disinformation debunks, prebunking articles, and narrative reports on transcontinental trends reported by a coalition of 40+ fact-checking organisations across Europe in a project known as Elections24Check.

It emphasises checks on claims made related to the 2024 European Elections. Users can search and filter for articles in different languages, relating to specific countries and political parties, and about certain topics, such as climate change and security and defence. The goal is to increase cross-country collaboration and act as a resource for European citizens ahead of the vote in June.

As part of the project, statistical information about disinformation trends during the election will become available as organisations input their data, and researchers can request access to a full dataset. Participating fact-checking organisations will also publish reports analysing the data. Visibility of the mis and disinformation circulating in other European countries will prove invaluable when it comes to ensuring early intervention of false, misleading or harmful narratives.

Lorena Martínez, Logically Facts Head of Editorial Operations in Europe and UK, commented, “Elections24Check is a crucial project ahead of a major year for European elections. We’ve known for some time the threat false and misleading information can have on democratic processes, but with burgeoning threats like AI evolving rapidly, closer collaboration across the community and continual innovation are essential if we are to build a more trusted and reliable public information environment in which democracy can thrive”.

Chair of the EFCSN, Carlos Hernández-Echevarría, added, “Elections24Check will offer an early detection system of online misinformation for the entire continent. Participating fact-checking organisations not only cover the EU, but also the wider community of neighbouring European countries as well. This is important because misinformation travels widely across borders”.

Contributing fact-checking organisations have committed to transparency, non-partisanship and journalistic excellence, focused on serving the public interest as established in the European Code of Standards for Independent Fact Checking Organisations.

Access the database at  https://elections24.efcsn.com