Spewing U.S. election falsehoods, AI chatbots face scrutiny

A voter fills out a ballot during the last day of early voting for midterm elections in the state at the Louis R. Jones Bayside Recreation Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on Saturday. | REUTERS

AFP-Jiji

Nov 1, 2026

Washington – Dispensing misleading voter information, misidentifying candidates, and regurgitating Russian propaganda, AI chatbots are sowing information chaos ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, researchers say.

The Nov. 3 vote marks the first federal election in which millions of voters are actively relying on AI tools for political information, a trend that experts say is playing a key role in shaping the information ecosystem ahead of the polls.

But while chatbots can help debunk conspiracies and educate voters, multiple studies show they frequently draw on unreliable sources on the open web, eroding public trust and further polluting an internet already plagued by election misinformation.

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