Glasgow 2024 Hugo Awards voting fraud uncovered

The Glasgow 2024 Hugo Administration Subcommittee announced on Monday (July 22) a significant breach in the integrity of this year’s Hugo Awards voting process, revealing that nearly 400 votes were fraudulently influenced to favour a particular finalist.

Possible fraud during voting uncovered at Hugo Awards

Nicholas Whyte, Glasgow 2024 Hugo Administrator, disclosed the specifics of the anomaly detected during vote tallying. “A large number of votes in 2024 were cast by accounts which fail to meet the criteria of being ‘natural persons’, with obvious fake names and/or other disqualifying characteristics.

“These included, for instance, a run of voters whose second names were identical except that the first letter was changed, in alphabetical order; and a run of voters whose names were translations of consecutive numbers,” Whyte explained in a statement. “Many of these votes favoured one finalist in particular, who we will call Finalist A.”

According to the WSFS Constitution, it states: “In all matters arising under this Constitution, only natural persons may introduce business, nominate, or vote, except as specifically provided otherwise in this Constitution.”

The investigation also uncovered a scheme where individuals were reimbursed for purchasing WSFS memberships after voting as instructed by an anonymous sponsor. This led to the disqualification of 377 votes from a total of 3,813, casting a shadow over the legitimacy of the voting process. “This decision is not one made lightly, but we are duty bound as the Hugo Administrators to protect the Hugo Awards and to act against fraud,” added Whyte.

Whyte stressed the importance of transparency in the wake of the voting discrepancies discovered. He stated, “We want to reassure 2024 Hugo voters that the ballots cast were counted fairly. Most of all, we want to assure the winners of this year’s Hugos that they have won fair and square, without any arbitrary or unexplained exclusion of votes or nominees and without any possibility that their award had been gained through fraudulent means.”

The subcommittee stressed that there is no evidence implicating Finalist A in the fraudulent activities. Despite the disqualifications, no finalists have been removed from the competition, ensuring the fairness of the awards.

Read: Hugo Awards controversy: R. F. Kuang’s Babel excluded

The revelations follow a turbulent year for the Hugo Awards, marked by controversies during the previous World Science Fiction Convention. Notably, allegations of censorship emerged after the exclusion of several authors from the ballot, sparking resignations within the Worldcon Intellectual Property management.

Authors and leaders voice their support

In response to the recent voting fraud, renowned author and this year’s finalist, John Scalzi, praised the subcommittee’s transparency. “You just threw a whole lot of money into the trash, pal,” Scalzi remarked on the efforts to manipulate the awards.

Professor Esther MacCallum-Stewart, chair of this year’s Worldcon, also expressed her support for the stringent measures taken. “These awards are a cornerstone of our convention and represent the pinnacle of achievement in our community”, she stated.

The full implications of the voting fraud will be further disclosed following the Hugo Awards ceremony scheduled for August 11, 2024, in Glasgow, promising full transparency with the publication of the voting results minus the disqualified ballots.

Image credit: Hugo Awards