'Dancing With the Stars' faces backlash as voting scandal rocks season 34 finale
Right before the much-anticipated finale, 'Dancing with the Stars' Season 34 was hit with a controversy that no one saw coming. For the uninitiated, the finale of the dance competition, which aired on Tuesday, November 25, featured three competitive rounds, a judges' choice round, an instant dance challenge, and a freestyle round. But when it comes to choosing a 'DWTS' winner, fans' votes play a crucial role, and the Season 34 finale has courted controversy due to an alleged voting scandal.
A TikTok user claimed that Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy's fandom has spiraled out of control, with fans allegedly using dozens of emails and hundreds of votes to secure her win. Reacting to the situation, the user said, "This is crazy… What is going on with Dancing With the Stars? The new fandom is bonkers," as per Parade. The TikToker further claimed that an Earle superfan contacted them, asking them to "make more emails" to vote for her in the finale. The fan even bragged, "Last week I used 17 emails and gave Alix 220 votes just by myself."
@enolsttayw DWTS fandoms have gone too far!! Who are voting for? #teamelaine #teamjordan #dwts #greenscreen ♬ Deranged - Atomica Music
The TikToker criticized the tactic, asking, "With what time? Are you watching the show? Are you enjoying the show?" The same fan also alleged that Robert Irwin supporters are creating multiple emails to cast hundreds of votes. Currently, 'DWTS' rules don't forbid making multiple accounts; they only specify that viewers get 10 votes per couple, per voting method. Fans also shared their opinions, with one writing, "I didn't like Alix before this season, then started to like her during it. And now don't like her/ want to vote for her because of these people." Another fan added, "As a Whitney fan I'm voting for Robert and Witney This isn't right."
A third fan noted, "These fans have truly made me start to hate the show." Meanwhile, another fan remarked, "This is absolutely insane. dwts NEEDS to do something about the voting system next season, it’s getting ridiculous!" The criticism for 'DWTS' continued with more fans commenting on their displeasure. "And then the same people be like "no one is voted off" after they made campaigns to vote for everyone but Whitney, now they will only vote for her and create a bunch of fake emails," one fan wrote.
A second fan noted, "Everyone's gone crazy they’re either obsessive or hardcore haters and I’m getting a bit scared…" As per Gold Derby, 'Dancing With the Stars' Season 34 concluded with five finalists, Jordan Chiles, Earle, Dylan Efron, Elaine Hendrix, and Irwin, competing for the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy. In the end, Irwin and his pro partner, Witney Carson, were declared winners.
