Fact-check: Fake video claiming to show destruction of AfD mail-in ballots goes viral before Berlin vote

A video purportedly showing AfD mail-in ballot envelopes being thrown into a trash container in Berlin went viral on social media with approximately 328,000 views on X (formerly Twitter), timed just before Berlin's parliamentary elections scheduled for September 20. DW's fact-checking team investigated the clip and found it to be false. Analysts identified inconsistencies in the ballot envelopes shown in the video, which did not match the official design of Berlin's 2026 mail-in ballots. Additionally, the accounts spreading the video exhibited patterns consistent with coordinated inauthentic behavior. Election officials confirmed no irregularities with mail-in ballots have been reported. The fake video is the latest in a series of disinformation attempts targeting Germany's election process. Voters in Berlin elect a new state parliament on September 20.