Democrats running fake local news sites in swing states ahead of midterms: report

The Democratic Party is running a string of questionable local news sites to spread messages in favor of their platform ahead of the November midterm elections.

According to a report from Axios, the network consists of at least 51 sites across 10 battleground states, including Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

These sites follow a pattern: "aggregated local news content and short write-ups about local sports teams and attractions — interspersed with heavily slanted political news aimed at boosting Democratic midterm candidates and attacking Republican opponents," according to the report.

The outlet identified the relatively nascent firm Local Report as responsible for operating many of the sites, referencing the "about us" section available on each. Another organization, The American Independent, was identified as a major contributor to the effort.

"Six American Independent writers have each contributed to most or all of the sites in the network," the outlet wrote in its report. The American Independent is a left-wing organization owned by True Blue Media, which maintains close ties with former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, per the Epoch Times. Axios also noted TAI's funding of left-wing watchdog Media Matters for America.

The midterm elections take place on Nov. 8, with Republicans expected to make gains in the House, Senate, and in statewide contests.