Sourcing standards
The source hierarchy
Every Kredulous card cites a source a reader can open. Sources are ranked in six tiers by how authoritative they are, and the tier is shown on every card during evaluation and in every results table. Lower numbers are more authoritative.
Election authority
Election authorities: certified candidate lists, official results, qualified measures.
- Examples
- California Secretary of State, county election offices
- How it is used
- Race rosters, matchups, certification status.
Official voter information
Official voter information published by election authorities.
- Examples
- Official Voter Information Guide, candidate statements, LAO analyses
- How it is used
- Candidate-submitted statements and official summaries.
Official government record
Official government records of votes and actions.
- Examples
- California Legislative Information, House Clerk and Senate roll calls, Congress.gov, agency records
- How it is used
- Voting records and official acts, quoted from the record itself.
Campaign finance record
Campaign finance records.
- Examples
- CAL-ACCESS and Power Search (state), FEC (federal)
- How it is used
- Contribution and spending figures.
Candidate-owned source
Candidate-owned sources.
- Examples
- Campaign sites and issue pages, press releases, official social accounts, debate transcripts, questionnaires
- How it is used
- Always labeled as a candidate-stated position on the card, never presented as fact.
Nonpartisan aggregator or reputable secondary
Nonpartisan aggregators and reputable secondary coverage.
- Examples
- VOTE411, CalMatters, Ballotpedia, Vote Smart, OpenSecrets, LegiScan, reputable local and public media
- How it is used
- Summaries of positions and records, attributed to the outlet.
The candidate-stated rule
Candidate-stated position
Candidate-stated positions are presented as candidate-stated positions. Kredulous verifies the source and attribution, but does not treat campaign claims as independently verified facts unless separately sourced.
Archives
Where feasible, every source carries an archived snapshot so readers can see exactly what was cited even if the original page changes or disappears. When a snapshot attempt fails, a dated waiver is logged on the source and the capture is retried; the validation gate requires one or the other on every card.
Current source mix across live races
- Official records (tiers 0 to 3)9 cards (20%)
- Candidate-stated (tier 4)12 cards (27%)
- Nonpartisan and secondary (tier 5)24 cards (53%)