AI reshapes traditional campaign strategies

Technology Newsletter AI reshapes traditional campaign strategies Comments: by Miranda Nazzaro and Julia Shapero - 08/11/26 5:51 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Miranda Nazzaro and Julia Shapero - 08/11/26 5:51 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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AI reshapes traditional campaign strategies

Artificial intelligence is reshaping the campaign trail, as candidates up and down the ballot turn to the technology for deepfake attack ads, viral social media posts and self-promotion.

The embrace of AI as a political tool varies across political lines and races, drawing debate over whether deepfake content — particularly realistic videos or audio — could mislead voters or disrupt the democratic process.

Proponents argue AI-generated content just marks a new chapter for campaign advertising, building upon decades of political cartoons and graphics for a cheaper price.

The conversation was amplified last week, when the social conservative group American Principles Project (APP) released a digital ad in support of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) depicting his Senate race opponent, Texas state Rep. James Talarico (D), as a doctor performing gender-reassignment surgery on a little girl.

“We took the approach of using AI in the same way that you would use political cartoons to articulate a point or a message about the consequences of someone’s voting behavior or their actions while in office,” Terry Schilling, the president of APP, told The Hill on Monday.

The 30-second digital ad resembles the 1964 “Daisy” ad for former President Lyndon B. Johnson, which played on fears of the Cold War nuclear race, and is part of a larger Republican movement targeting Talarico over his support of transgender people.

Schilling said the group used AI to depict what Talarico’s policies could “look like in reality,” but JT Ennis, a spokesperson for the Talarico campaign, told The Hill the ad is “flat-out lying” and that the Texas Democrat does not support gender-transition surgery for minors.

It is the latest of dozens of AI-generated attacks across the country this cycle and follows another Paxton ad in March showing an AI-generated version of Talarico in a dress singing about transgender children.

Other viral attack ads have featured former Los Angeles mayoral candidate and reality television star Spencer Pratt, who was depicted in a May ad as a hero in a Gotham-influenced, dystopian hellscape, while incumbent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) was shown as the Joker. Pratt lost the GOP primary nomination in June.

In New York, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman is facing an ethics complaint over his campaign’s use of AI in ads against New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D). The chair of the New York State Democratic Committee argued the ads are an attempt to “distort reality.”

As AI’s image, audio and video capabilities grow, the content is becoming more realistic and accessible to not only campaigns but also everyday users online.

While some political organizations are embracing the advancing technology, others are concerned about the spread of misinformation, even if a reasonable viewer could understand it is not real.

Read more in a full report at TheHill.com

Welcome to The Hill’s Technology newsletter, we’re Julia Shapero and Miranda Nazzaro — tracking the latest moves from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.

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