Google ‘fixes’ issues with voting search results that weren’t actually broken

Google says it has fixed an issue with its search engine that caused it to display a “where to vote” panel that includes a map of polling places for some specific voting-related searches, but not for others. The tech giant even used the word “fixed” to answer this question, despite the fact that Google search worked correctly and as intended. In doing so, Google has fueled unfounded conspiracy theories that the company is deliberately displaying biased results.

This problem was highlighted on X by Elon Musk, who asked if others had also seen the problem with “where to vote” queries and later posted a raised eyebrow emoji when reposting another user’s post showing the differences in the two Google searches.

The problem, according to Musk and his supporters, was that users searching for “Where can I vote for Harris?” will see a map prompting you to enter an address to find your local polling station. But those who enter the same query for Trump will only see a selection of top stories and other standard search results.

However, the conspiracy theory put forward did not hold water as Google confirmed on X that the search engine was effectively working as intended given that “Harris” also name of place is a county in Texas, but Trump is not. As Google noted in an X post Tuesday afternoon, a similar map will appear if users search for “where can I vote for Vance?” (Trump’s Vice Presidential Pick) because “Vance” is also the name of the county.

This explanation should have been enough to debunk conspiracies circulating on X that Google displays biased results. Despite this clarification, Google has decided to change how and when “where to vote” panel will appear in response to these search queries, making it appear as if the company has taken responsibility for the mistake it made.

IN post on X at 3:22 pm ET on Tuesday, the search giant said a fix was coming, adding that very few people would actually search for voting information by adding their county name to their query. At 3:38 pm ET Google published “Update: This has now been corrected.”

As expected, Google’s choice of words to say it has “solved” the problem has raised questions among those inclined to believe that Google is somehow trying to influence the election. X users wondered why, if Google had done nothing wrong, it would need to “fix” the problem. Others continued to blame Google for the mistake and suggested various punitive measures such as fines and lawsuits.

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.