Generative AI’s Global Election Invasion: Unmasking the Future of Democracy in 2024

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Authored by Vittoria Elliott

The WIRED AI Elections Initiative

In countries like India and Indonesia, deceased politicians are seemingly endorsing their political heirs; meanwhile, in South Africa, the artist Eminem appears to be backing rival political factions; and over in the United States, President Joe Biden seems to be advising New Hampshire voters to not participate. While these events seem to have occurred, they're actually not factual. The era of generative AI has arrived, and it's targeting the electoral process. Prepare yourself for what's ahead, we're entering the year 2024.

For the first time in history, the widespread use of generative AI is set to directly impact political campaigns and elections. The year 2024 marks a historic moment for democratic processes: Over 2 billion individuals, the highest figure to date, are expected to participate in voting across a variety of national, local, and regional elections in over 60 countries.

The worldwide voting population is now facing challenges introduced by this advanced technology. Deepfakes have applications ranging from undermining efforts to comic relief and even everyday activities; we've observed artificial intelligence chatbots composing speeches and providing explanations on a candidate's policy stance. However, there have also been instances where AI was employed to degrade women in politics and create false appearances of global leaders endorsing pyramid schemes. Furthermore, AI has facilitated the launching of bot campaigns and the customization of automated messages to electorate members.

Specialists recognize that generative AI is on the brink of transforming the realm of information significantly, yet the specifics of this change remain under exploration. Challenges such as misinformation, fraud, and offensive material, which have historically troubled technological platforms, are expected to intensify, even with the protective measures that firms claim to have established.

Therefore, to truly understand the impact of generative AI as it penetrates and transforms the spheres of politics and information, we're monitoring its global progression throughout the remainder of the year.

This continuously evolving compilation, including both a list and a map, will be updated regularly throughout 2024. The map will display the countries where generative AI's application in elections has been noted, along with the frequency of such occurrences. The individual entries will offer detailed insights about each occurrence, covering the timing and nature of the event. Furthermore, we are committed to documenting the entities, technologies, and platforms associated with each case.

North American electoral processes occur in several countries, including Belize, Canada, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, and the United States.

European nations holding elections encompass Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Romania, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, and the United Kingdom. A significant number of these states are members of the European Union, which is set to conduct its parliamentary elections this year.

Asian electoral processes are observed in the following countries: Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Mongolia, North Korea, Pakistan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, and Uzbekistan.

African countries that hold elections encompass: Algeria, Botswana, Chad, Comoros, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Madagascar, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, South Sudan, Togo, and Tunisia.

For further details on our approach and to share an instance of AI application in elections, kindly click the link provided below.

Animations in ASCII by: David Szakaly

Photographs provided by: Getty, Willy Kurniawan/Reuters for Asia

Images generated by AI from: Luke Brocks (featuring Biden); Mark Kaye (depicting Trump); Sun News (highlighting Karunanidhi/DMK Party); @doctorrichabjp (showcasing Kejriwal Jail); Taiwan Fact Check Center (portraying Xi Jinping and Lai Ching-te); @sobingrouper (featuring Rob Wittman); @zelensky_neofficial (presenting Zelensky); Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (showing Victoria Shi)

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