Election officials across the U.S. are advising voters to exercise caution when using artificial intelligence chatbots, such as ChatGPT and Claude, to seek information about elections. As AI increasingly intersects with political processes, concerns linger about the accuracy of the information voters may receive, including potentially outdated details, fabricated information, or misinformation.
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon emphasized that voters should rely on trusted sources, stating, "The bottom line for me is that voters should seek out trusted sources of information, and the most trusted source are people who administer elections."
West Virginia Secretary of State Kris Warner highlighted the potential for errors, particularly with localized queries. He noted that if voters do not specify the state, chatbots might provide information for incorrect Harrison Counties that exist in multiple states, leading to inaccurate results. "They're not going to get the right information," Warner said.
Officials also point to past incidents where AI has negatively impacted elections. New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan recalled a 2024 robocall that used AI to impersonate then-President Joe Biden. Scanlan stated that his office continues to stress the importance of obtaining accurate information directly from election officials.
"When that occurred, we reacted very quickly ... to inform voters that the only source of accurate information that you can rely on is from your local election officials, or the secretary of state, or the attorney general, and we're still driving that message home in this upcoming midterm election," Scanlan said. He added that he believes AI may eventually assist election officials in disseminating information more rapidly.
The emergence of AI as an information source has also influenced how some election officials communicate. Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs noted that many officials are now focusing more on explaining election processes rather than just reminding voters of election dates.
Connecticut Secretary of State Stephanie Thomas expressed uncertainty about whether her office would engage directly with AI chatbot companies, citing mixed results from efforts to establish safeguards with social media platforms. "So I'm not sure if the AI community will be very different. But it's certainly something that we'll be considering," Thomas said.
AI companies are responding to these concerns. OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, stated it is collaborating with The Associated Press to provide accurate election results and with Democracy Works to offer reliable information on voting and registration processes. Anthropic, the company behind Claude, plans to implement a banner for election-related inquiries that directs users to Democracy Works. Google's Gemini chatbot aims to surface authoritative election information directly in search results and responses, including links to official resources, while maintaining neutral responses.
Meta is integrating its Meta AI platform into services like Facebook and Instagram, designing it to provide local and official information. The company also engages with associations of election officials, allowing them to flag instances of voters receiving incorrect information, which Meta can then use to check its tools.
Meanwhile, some election offices are exploring AI's potential as an administrative tool. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose's office developed "Eva" (Elections Virtual Assistant), a chatbot trained on internal manuals to answer questions from election officials about Ohio's election procedures. LaRose cautioned, however, that officials must verify Eva's responses against official statutes and directives, as the bot cannot provide legal counsel and struggles with future election dates.
Other states remain hesitant. Maine Deputy Secretary of State Kate McBrien stated that Maine is not yet comfortable using AI for election administration due to perceived risks, cybersecurity unknowns, and unverified information. "Right now, it is too risky. There's just too many unknowns and too much unverified information ... until there's really good insurances on cybersecurity, Maine is not comfortable going there for elections yet," McBrien said.