Stand up for the facts!

Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.

More Info

I would like to contribute

Instagram posts
stated on November 5, 2024 in Instagram posts:
A video of Vice President Kamala Harris talking to a voter on the phone is fake because the camera app was on while she was on the call.
true false
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, greets volunteers as she prepares to phone bank at the DNC headquarters on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, in Washington. (AP) Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, greets volunteers as she prepares to phone bank at the DNC headquarters on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, in Washington. (AP)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, greets volunteers as she prepares to phone bank at the DNC headquarters on Election Day, Nov. 5, 2024, in Washington. (AP)

Sofia Ahmed
By Sofia Ahmed November 6, 2024

Video of Harris calling a voter while the camera app is open does not prove she faked a call

If Your Time is short

  • iPhones can run other apps during a call, according to iPhone user guides for operating systems 12 to 18.

  • In the rest of the full video, Harris talks to other voters on speaker phone, other people’s voices can be heard while the phone app is open. 

  • We tried it ourselves on an iPhone and found that we could make a call with the camera app open.

Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise visit to a Washington, D.C., Democratic National Committee phone bank on Election Day. Harris was handed a phone to speak with a voter, a moment that went viral as social media users questioned the interaction.

An Instagram user shared the clip of Harris with the caption, "#KamalaHarris pretends to talk to voter on the phone, forgets she’s FAKING IT and holds her phone up, revealing her CAMERA APP open."

(Screenshot from Instagram.)

The video was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)

Sign up for PolitiFact texts

The clip went viral with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and former President Donald Trump’s son Eric Trump reposting it on X saying it shows that Harris faked the phone call.

In the full video Harris is handed a phone that she answers by saying, "Alexandria, it’s Kamala Harris … Have you voted already? You did, thank you!" The audience erupts in applause and Harris faces the phone towards the crowd, showing that the camera app is open.

But the clip is not proof that the phone call was staged, as social media users said. iPhones can run other apps during a call, according to the iPhone user guide for operating systems 12 to 18.

Featured Fact-check

We tried it ourselves on an iPhone and successfully made a call while the camera app was open.

In the rest of the full video, Harris talks to other voters on speaker phone. Other people’s voices can be heard while the phone app is open.

We rate the claim that a video of Harris talking to a voter on the phone is fake because the camera app was on False.

PolitiFact Staff Writer Maria Ramirez Uribe contributed to this report.

Our Sources

Browse the Truth-O-Meter

More by Sofia Ahmed

Video of Harris calling a voter while the camera app is open does not prove she faked a call

Support independent fact-checking.
Become a member!

In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.

Sign me up