What’s happening
Many QAnon believers running for political office in the course of the midterms lost their races.
Why it matters
The concerted effort by QAnon followers to take over vital state offices failed.
The QAnon conspiracy theory falsely claims former President Donald Trump fought a hidden war against a cabal of Satanist pedophiles in Hollywood and the Democratic Party while he was within the White House. Believers within the debunked conspiracy ran for high-ranking positions in midterm elections across several states but ultimately lost.
Dozens of candidates who showed support for QAnon previously lost their races last week for high-ranking state offices, including the secretary of state and governor. This included Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano, Arizona secretary of state candidate Mark Finchem and Jim Marchant, the Nevada secretary of state candidate. A person known as Juan O. Savin worked with Marchant and Finchem to create a coalition of secretary of state candidates in an try and have control of the election system in multiple states.
Belief within the conspiracy theory’s ridiculous claims, which originated back in 2017, continues to contaminate politics even though it appears the midterm elections were a repudiation of the previous president in addition to those that consider within the conspiracy. The nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute, a nonprofit that researches the intersection of faith, culture and public policy, released a study in February showing that almost 16% of Americans consider the core QAnon conspiracy theory.
“QAnon has evolved from a movement centered around Trump leading a secret military intelligence operation to save lots of the world, right into a movement that not only doesn’t need Trump but doesn’t even need the iconography it developed over the past 4 years,” said Mike Rothschild, conspiracy researcher and writer of The Storm Is Upon Us, which provides a history of the QAnon conspiracy theory.
Conspiracy theories could be dangerous and even deadly, as seen in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic as vaccine misinformation led to some people succumbing to the virus. Despite being repeatedly debunked, belief within the QAnon conspiracy theory continues to contaminate areas of politics beyond Trump. Up to now this yr, elements of the QAnon have seeped into protests, a Supreme Court hearing and laws.
“Its mythology of secret pedophile rings, suppressed cures and technology, massive corruption and fraud propelling a [purportedly] decrepit Joe Biden into office and COVID being a hoax, have infected every aspect of mainstream conservative politics and culture,” Rothschild added.
Listed here are a number of the current events that QAnon has latched onto, some obvious and others less so.
QAnon candidates lose midterms
In 2020, almost 100 candidates who expressed support for QAnon ran for office. The 2 most outstanding candidates who won their races were Rep. Lauren Boebert, a Republican from Colorado, and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia.
The yr began with 78 candidates who consider in QAnon running for office in 28 states, in line with Grid News. After their respective primaries, the number dropped all the way down to 15 Q followers heading to the midterms. This included the previously mentioned Rep. Greene, who won her race, and Rep. Boebert, whose race remains to be too near call as of Monday.
Many of the QAnon candidates who were on the Republican ticket lost their races within the midterm elections. Those that lost on the state level include gubernatorial candidates Doug Mastriano for Pennsylvania and Dan Cox for Maryland, and secretary of state candidates Mark Finchem for Arizona, Jim Marchant for Nevada and Kristina Karamo for Michigan. One secretary of state candidate who did win their race was Diego Morales of Indiana.
QAnon influencer who goes by the name Juan O. Savin — whose real name is Wayne Williot but uses an alias intended to sound much like James Bond’s codename “007” — was behind the coalition to get Q faithful candidates into the secretary of state offices in Arizona, Michigan and Nevada, in line with a report from Media Matters. The 2020 presidential elections and false claims of voter fraud made Americans more aware of the responsibilities of the position of secretary of state. In lots of states, that is the official who helps determine whether an election had voter fraud issues.
One candidate who didn’t get past his primary race also happened to be the person allegedly accountable for posting because the mysterious figure behind the conspiracy theory. Ron Watkins is the previous site administrator for the anonymous board 8chan and, as specified by the Q: Into the Storm documentary series, the person purportedly accountable for most of the Q drops (he denies it). Watkins gained prominence amongst Republicans following the 2020 presidential election, when he repeated claims of election fraud, which have since been debunked.
Watkins’ campaign within the Republican primary for Arizona’s 2nd congressional district seat ended on Aug. 2 when he got here in last place, with 1,952 votes, in line with Ballotpedia.
QAnon returns to Twitter
Twitter cracked down on QAnon accounts in 2020, banning tens of 1000’s of users promoting the conspiracy theory. Things modified this yr when Elon Musk announced his interest in purchasing the corporate. News of this acquisition spurred QAnon believers into returning to Twitter in large numbers. Not only did they return to the social media platform, but some also purchased Twitter Blue, which gave their accounts a blue check mark verification badge and was a recent feature Musk implemented when he took over the corporate in late October.
Trump embraces QAnon
On Truth Social, the social media platform that he owns, Trump repeatedly promotes content from QAnon believers. It is a stark contrast from his time in office when he said he didn’t know much about QAnon. One example of his embracing the conspiracy theory is a post from Sept. 12 showing a graphic of him wearing a Q lapel pin. The image also features a phrase commonly utilized by believers within the conspiracy theory — “The storm is coming” — and the abbreviation “WWG1WGA,” which refers back to the Q slogan “Where we go one, we go all.”
Together with promoting QAnon posts on Truth Social, Trump began using a song at his rallies that is very much like a song utilized in QAnon videos. Because the music played at his Ohio rally on Sept. 18, those in attendance began holding up one finger in what gave the impression to be a salute to Trump.
Trump’s representatives didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.
Truth Social becomes a hub for QAnon
In late 2021, Trump said he would start a recent social media platform called Truth Social. It launched in early 2022, and while the previous president didn’t post on it for months, he has made heavy use of it especially for the reason that FBI search on his estate, Mar-a-Lago, on Aug. 8.
The promotion of QAnon appears to be a part of the strategy for Truth Social. A researcher tweeted in August how the Q account on the platform was created a day before Trump’s account.
Newsguard, a media watchdog, found that Truth Social verified 47 users accounts that promoted QAnon content. A complete of 88 who made Q posts had greater than 10,000 followers, and 32 of those accounts were previously banned on Twitter.
Durham investigation
In May 2019, Attorney General Bill Barr ordered an investigation into the 2016 presidential election and tapped US Attorney John Durham to guide it. Many QAnon followers viewed this investigation as a part of the “storm” that will result in arrests of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and others throughout the Democratic National Committee. One in every of the last messages from Q in 2020 had just one word: Durham.
Michael Sussmann, a cybersecurity lawyer who worked with Clinton’s campaign in 2016, was indicted by Durham in September 2021 for allegedly lying to the FBI. A jury acquitted him of the charge on May 31.
Each Trump and Q followers shared their dismay on the US legal system after the acquittal was announced. Some also began to spin the choice to support the false conspiracy.
Durham’s investigation appears to be nearing an end, according a report from the Recent York Times on Sept. 14. A grand jury for hearing evidence has expired and there seem like no plans to convene one other.
Jan. 6 committee hearing reveals Trump’s QAnon inner circle
The House select committee investigating the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol began holding public hearings in June, Trump’s actions leading as much as the day of the riot. A July 12 hearing focused on a fiery meeting Trump had on the White House on Dec. 18, 2020. In attendance together with White House staff were former Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne, former National Security Adviser Gen. Mike Flynn and former federal prosecutor Sidney Powell. The three are related to the Q movement.
Byrne was a Trump supporter, and weeks after the 2020 presidential election, he appeared on various QAnon shows claiming he had proof of the election being stolen. Flynn also showed his support for the conspiracy theory in 2020 when he uploaded a video of himself and his family reciting an oath created by Q. Powell was an attorney for Flynn in his criminal case and had given subtle hints of her support for QAnon.
The three, together with former Trump attorney Rudy Guiliani, advised Trump to call a national emergency and seize voting machines, which they falsely claimed had been compromised. Their suggestions countered those of former White House officials who had little reason to doubt the election was conducted fairly, resulting in a screaming match between the 2 groups.
The return of Q
On Dec. 8, 2020, Q made what many individuals thought can be a final post. But on June 24 the account began posting again on 8kun, formerly generally known as 8chan.
The three posts made by the Q account consisted of the identical form of cryptic verbiage used previously. One other post was made on June 28 referencing Cassidy Hutchinson, a former aide to then White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows. Hutchinson testified in front of the Jan. 6 committee the identical day.
War in Ukraine
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, Russia has been using misinformation to attempt to justify Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to go to war. Each Facebook and Twitter have called out Russia for its disinformation efforts. One false narrative touted by Russia early within the invasion was that Ukraine had supposedly been developing bioweapons, a conspiracy theory that was floated by QAnon believers months earlier.
Posts from conspiracy theorists in 2021 claimed falsely that Biden and his son, Hunter, were a part of a plot to develop bioweapons in foreign countries, in line with Media Matters. One in every of the countries mentioned was Ukraine.
Days before Russia began spreading misinformation about biolabs, a conspiracy theory Twitter account shared the false claim concerning the labs in Ukraine. It began circulating in QAnon circles, after which quickly spread to other right-wing forums and was amplified by conservative media including Fox News’ Tucker Carlson. Eventually, each Russia and China began running with the narrative of the Ukraine biolabs.
Claims of bioweapons being made in Ukraine have been proven false. The US and Ukraine do have a treaty to forestall the event of bioweapons in labs that were created when Ukraine was a part of the Soviet Union.
Trump’s potential return to Twitter
A month after he announced his intention to purchase Twitter, Musk said that he’d remove the platform’s ban on Trump. The former president’s account was banned by Twitter days after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
This news sent some QAnon believers right into a fervor on various social media platforms where they congregate, reminiscent of Gab and Telegram.
They suggested Trump’s possible return to Twitter was predicted by Q in 2017 and can be an indication the previous president was about to substantiate a crackdown on the fictional cabal. Like all the QAnon conspiracy, this is totally false.
The previous president would reportedly be obligated to post first to his own social media platform before sharing things on other sites. Trump said he would not return to Twitter if he was unbanned. Up to now, no decision has been made to reinstate Trump’s account.
Supreme Court hearing
The US Senate in June confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson for the Supreme Court by a vote of 53-47. She’ll replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, who stepped down on June 30 at the tip of the judicial term.
Jackson’s confirmation hearing was expected to be a political circus. Some Republican senators questioned her judicial decisions, while also appearing to make subtle references to QAnon.
Sen. Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, attempted to portray Jackson as having a soft record in cases involving sexual offenders who targeted children. His attacks were considered misleading. Other Republican senators — including Lindsey Graham from South Carolina, Tom Cotton from Arkansas and Ted Cruz from Texas — followed suit in declaring Jackson was lenient to pedophiles. In point of fact, her record is on par with other judges who tried similar cases.
QAnon believers took to social media platforms reminiscent of Telegram and Truth Social, posting messages supporting the Republican senators pursuing these attacks and denouncing Jackson. The Q faithful viewed these senators to be in support of their conspiracy that Democrats were a part of a pedophile cabal and turned a blind eye to child sex crimes.
Trucker convoy/anti-vax
At first of the yr, a bunch of anti-vaxxers in Canada formed a movement to occupy the country’s capital over vaccine requirements, using semi-trucks. The trucker convoy lasted weeks as trucks camped out in Ottawa before Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made use of emergency powers to force the removal of the protestors.
In March, an analogous protest happened within the US with the goal of reaching Washington, DC. This version got much less attention and support, partly on account of the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
QAnon believers played a task in each the protests. COVID vaccine misinformation runs rampant within the Q communities, and that misinformation begins infecting other right-wing groups. Trucks and other vehicles in each the US and Canada were adorned with QAnon logos and slogans.
Disney protest
Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill, also referred to by opponents because the “Don’t Say Gay Bill,” was signed into state law in March. Disney employees protested the corporate’s lack of motion on the bill’s passage, which in turn led the corporate to say it’ll work to repeal the law.
This drew the ire of Republican state legislators who passed a bill to remove Disney’s special tax status in April. The Mickey Mouse company also became the goal of QAnon believers.
Protests at the doorway of Disney World in Orlando, Florida, began in April. Those protesting chanted and carried signs referring to Disney World as “Pedo World” and the slogan “OK, groomer,” which is a tackle the “OK, boomer” meme.
QAnon believers not only supported these protests but in addition began spreading misinformation concerning the company and its CEO, Bob Chapek. This included exaggerating losses the corporate experienced on account of the protests and false claims that Chapek was arrested for human trafficking and child pornography. The claims about Chapek and his arrest are completely bogus.