‘They're eating the dogs': PolitiFact readers' choice for 2024 Lie of the Year

It’s time to announce the winner of PolitiFact’s 2024 Readers’ Choice Lie of the Year.

Although last year’s readers’ pick won by only a narrow margin, this year’s choice won by a landslide. And it’s proof that great minds think alike.

The reader pick for the 2024 Lie of the Year is also PolitiFact’s official editors’ choice: President-elect Donald Trump and Sen. JD Vance’s claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating pets.

Trump and Vance's outrageous rhetoric about Springfield had real effects on the city and its residents. Government buildings, hospitals and schools faced bomb threats, and local residents say Haitian immigrants have moved away from the city.

Despite numerous fact-checks and condemnation from Republican leaders, Trump didn’t stop using Springfield as a scare tactic for what could happen to American cities everywhere if voters didn’t choose him.

This is the fourth year in a row that a Trump claim has won our readers’ poll. He won in 2023 for his False claim that, "They are trying to make it illegal to question the results of a bad election," after he was charged in a federal indictment for efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Readers also picked Trump’s claim that he won the 2020 presidential election in 2021 and his claim about former President Barack Obama and classified documents in 2022.

Here’s our full list of choices and the percentage of votes each one received, as well as readers’ comments about why they cast their vote for a certain falsehood. 

1. Donald Trump: "In Springfield (Ohio), they're eating the dogs, the people that came in, they're eating the cats." Pants on Fire! 54%

What readers said:

"This lie spread across the nation to feed the racist fires in all communities. I'm in Colorado, and this added to the lies about the gangs in Aurora. We are now under threats of mass deportation, both here and nationwide. I feel this was the most hurtful and racist lie of all those listed."

"It got so much buzz, and immigration was such a central theme to the election. This also illustrates how Trump's dislike for immigrants was never confined to illegal ones. Even lawful residents get treated as less than human if they are from the wrong place."

"Because it caused such an uproar for a small midwestern town in Ohio. I happen to live about 30 miles from it. I saw the chaos up close. So irresponsible of anyone, let alone a president."

"They're eating the dogs; they're eating the cats! It became a meme and was definitely a defining moment in the election cycle. Quite shocking and a ridiculous outburst from a ridiculous man."

2. Donald Trump: The Biden administration stole $1 billion "from FEMA to use it for illegal migrants. … And FEMA is now busted. They don’t have any money." Pants on Fire! 17%

What readers said:

"It’s a tough choice, no doubt, but this one directly hurt people already suffering because of Hurricane Helene." 

"This touched people’s hearts thinking that those in disasters were being cheated by the government. It also sucked hope from the victims of the storms."

"Natural disasters are such a threat and are becoming more so every year. … Your homeowner's insurance won't be around to help for months or years, but FEMA is there in the first moments to provide relief. If people start to think that the government is taking the funds for anything other than disaster relief, it creates a sense of distrust in our government to be there for us when we need it most." 

3. Joe Biden: "I will not pardon" Hunter Biden. Full Flop. 6%

What readers said:

"Joe Biden pardons Hunter Biden. Total lack of respect for the rules of law from someone I thought had ethics and morals... very disappointed!"

"Most of the others were either absurd claims or at least a little subjective. My finalists were this and Trump's FEMA claims. I went with Biden because it was the most straightforward, bald-faced undebatable lie."

"I chose the pardon because all the others were secondhand information that could have easily been misconstrued. A full flop is the ultimate lie."

4. JD Vance: Says Donald Trump did not lose the 2020 election. Pants on Fire! 6%

5. Marjorie Taylor Greene: Patents dating back to the 1800s show that people can control the weather. Pants on Fire! 5%

6. Other 4%

7. Elon Musk: President Joe Biden’s strategy is to "get as many illegals in the country as possible" and "legalize them to create a permanent majority." False. 4%

8. Donald Trump: Kamala Harris was "Indian all the way, and then all of a sudden, she made a turn and she went, she became a Black person." Pants on Fire! 2%

9. Kamala Harris: Donald Trump would "force states to monitor women's pregnancies." False. 1%

10. JB Pritzker: JD Vance is "known for his obsession with couches." Pants on Fire! 1%