X has suspended more than 13,000 accounts tied to three suspected foreign influence operations linked to Iran, Russia, and China. With the US midterms approaching, the platform said the fake X accounts were trying to shape political debate in the United States. The crackdown came one week after OpenAI announced it had disrupted two similar influence campaigns from Russia and Iran.  The company announced the suspensions on Wednesday while outlining its plans for the November 3 US midterm elections. According to X, its investigations found that the networks used fake accounts to publish and amplify political content aimed at candidates and public figures "across the political spectrum." 

Fake X Accounts Targeted Candidates Across Party Lines 

X said it detected the accounts through "proactive sweeps and investigations" carried out under its rules against spam and coordinated inauthentic behaviour.  In a statement on the suspensions, X Global Government Affairs said: "Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and we are proud that X is the global town square where these debates happen. Our job is to keep that conversation authentic, open, and safe."  Along with removing the fake X accounts, the platform set out its rules for the US midterms. These rules ban misleading information about how, when, or where to vote. They also cover attempts to suppress voter turnout and acts of voter intimidation, including calls for violence near polling stations.  Users who come across questionable election-related posts can report them through the "civic integrity" option and request a community note that adds context. In urgent cases, X said it may also label posts that break its election rules. 

OpenAI's Recent Action and X's Earlier Crackdowns 

X's announcement followed a similar move by OpenAI a week earlier. OpenAI said it had shut down two alleged influence operations from Russia and Iran that used ChatGPT to create fake journalist personas. One of the operations also ran a "think-tank" that covertly spread anti-Ukraine propaganda.  This is not the first time the platform has acted against suspected foreign networks. In 2021, Twitter, as X was then known, said it had suspended 238 accounts purportedly operating from Iran.  The latest suspensions are much larger than that earlier action. The actions by X and OpenAI also show that foreign influence efforts are now spread across several technology platforms, from social media networks to AI tools, as the US midterms draw closer. 

Two things I've been playing around with: https://paidforby.info/ Photograph your mail. If your material involves a federal race, the app will immediately give you detailed information about who is paying for it. For state and local races, a Popular Information journalist will review your submission. And https://midterms.theleahfiles.com/candidates Select your state to see every race on your ballot and who is running in it. Below that is the money behind these races: who is giving, who is receiving, and what outside groups are spending.

From the second link (scroll down): Who is funding the outside groups? 2,100 people and 765 companies each put $25,000 or more into a committee that spent on a congressional race. $365.3M came from just eight people. That is 35 percent of the $1.04B that all 2,100 people on this list put into groups spending on House and Senate races. The most common targets of billionaire outside spending on attack ads? James Talarico (TX), Sherrod Brown (OH) and Abdul El-Sayed (MI). *** Popular Information (first link) has been running a series on misleading / false statements in political flyers and attack ads. The falsehoods billionaires are mailing to Ohio voters The anti-Acton mailer is a vivid illustration of why more journalistic scrutiny of political mail is necessary. Every claim on V-PAC's mailer is either flatly false or deeply misleading. The lie dominating Musk's 2026 political ads. Musk is blanketing the internet with digital ads falsely accusing Democratic Senate candidates of supporting "taxpayer-funded sex changes for kids." WATCH: GOP super PAC quietly launches outlandish smear against Talarico. Shortly after Popular Information reached out for comment, the ad was taken offline. *** Related: 172 Billionaire Families Have Spent Record $1.7 Billion on 2026 Midterms So Far: Analysis The Leah Files on metafilter previously.

Advocates for Trans Equality has a great slate of candidates running for office. Each of these leaders has demonstrated a deep commitment to the rights and well-being of the transgender community. With 5 federal candidates and dozens of state and local candidates in states as diverse as Massachusetts, California, Utah, Indiana, and Georgia, this list has something for everyone. If you're looking for a little inspiration, or a candidate you can support with some door-knocking or a donation, this list is for you.

Want more? The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund is devoted to electing pro-equality, pro-choice LGBTQ+ leaders to public office at every level. Their massive list lets you filter candidates by office level, state, and party. (Choose Republican and get "There are no candidates at this time. Please check back later.") The Washington Blade has mini-profiles on the LGBTQ candidates running for U.S. House and Senate. Pop quiz: What's the biggest caucus in the House of Representatives? If you guessed the famous Freedom Caucus, or even the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, or the Congressional Black Caucus, guess again:

At the beginning of the 119th Congress, the Congressional Equality Caucus is the largest* caucus in the United States House of Representatives with 191 members, the most the caucus has ever started a Congress with. In the 118th Congress, the Equality Caucus had a peak membership of 195.

(There are 214 Democrats in the House. 191 of them belong to the Equality Caucus.) The mission of the caucus is to work for LGBTQI+ rights. The caucus is chaired by the most senior openly LGBTQ member of Congress and co-chaired by the other openly-LGBTQ members of the House of Representatives. Membership is open to any member of Congress who is willing to advance LGBTQI+ rights. Caucus co-chair Becca Balint talks about what the Equality Caucus can achieve if Democrats take the House, even with a hostile president: Rep. Becca Balint says Dems can slow Trump's anti-trans warfare. But first they must win midterms. LGBTQ Nation, Faefyx Collington This post was inspired by someone who recently received an unwanted check from the government and thought donating to pro-trans rights Democrats would be a fitting use for the money. I hope these links are helpful to any MeFites finding themselves with an unpleasant partisan windfall they'd prefer not to keep. The length of this post was inspired by my admiration for so many wonderful posts by kliuless. This post is dedicated to fabulous MeFite mephron, and also to my personal hero, Montana State Representative Zooey Zephyr. (I have mentioned on MetaFilter that when I'm obsessing about the current horrorshow, I try to steer my thoughts to people who are doing the work to make the world better. Zooey Zephyr is in my thoughts a LOT.) * Some numbers: The Democratic Caucus has 214 members. The Congressional Equality Caucus has 191 members. The New Democrat Coalition has 112 members. The Congressional Progressive Caucus has 99 members (in the House, plus 1 in the Senate). The Congressional Black Caucus has 54 members (in the House, plus 4 in the Senate). The Problem Solvers Caucus has 48 members (26 Democrats). The Freedom Caucus has 31 members (all Republicans; at least 6 will be gone next year).