AI Biden Impersonation Shakes Up New Hampshire Primary, Sparks Vote-Skipping Scandal

In a surprising turn of events, a robocall featuring an AI-generated version of President Joe Biden urged New Hampshire voters not to participate in the state’s primary election. This development has sparked fresh concerns about the potential for artificial intelligence to exacerbate election misinformation.

What Happened: The New Hampshire attorney general’s office confirmed the existence of a robocall that mimicked President Biden’s voice, advising voters to abstain from the primary election, reported The Hill on Monday. The call, which is believed to be artificially generated, was flagged as an illegal attempt to disrupt the primary.

The organizers of the campaign to write in Biden’s name in the primary condemned the robocall, labeling it as “deep fake disinformation designed to harm Joe Biden, suppress votes, and damage our democracy.”

Why It Matters: The incident has reignited concerns about the potential for AI to propagate election misinformation. Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) has called for regulating artificial intelligence following a similar AI-generated robocall in New Hampshire.

Meanwhile, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) is under pressure to address the use of AI in campaigns. Despite initiating a public comment session on a rule clarification in August, the commission has yet to issue an update. FEC Chairman Sean Cooksey has assured that the commission “will resolve the AI rulemaking by early summer.”

The use of AI in election-related activities has been a growing concern. In December 2023, Google announced restrictions on the range of election-related queries that its AI chatbot Bard and search generative experience can answer. This move was part of Google’s broader strategy to scrutinize the role of artificial intelligence in interacting with voters and campaigns during the 2024 U.S. Presidential election.

Meanwhile, the New Hampshire primary elections are underway, with former President Donald Trump reportedly receiving the backing of 55% of the survey respondents from New Hampshire, according to a Suffolk University poll. This support marks a five percentage point increase from the 50% he received during the first poll.

Photo by Michele Ursi on Shutterstock

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