AI assistants have been shown to be “unreliable and clearly biased” when providing election recommendations, the Dutch data protection authority (AP) has reported, raising alarms about a possible risk to democracy just over a week before the country’s general election.
Study Shows Repeated Partiality in Chatbot Recommendations
The four chatbots tested by the authority “frequently recommend identical two parties”, regardless of the user’s question or command, the watchdog explained in a analysis published ahead of the late October vote.
In more than half of the cases, the AI recommended either the right-wing PVV of Geert Wilders or the progressive GroenLinks-PvdA led by the former European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans.
Some parties, such as the moderate CDA, “are rarely ever cited”, even when the user’s input exactly matches the stances of these political entities, the report pointed out.
Official Warns Against Using AI Chatbots for Election Advice
The deputy head of the AP, the official Monique Verdier, commented that while AI assistants appear to be smart resources, “for election guidance, they repeatedly fall short”. Voters were being pushed toward a political group that might not correspond to their ideological beliefs, she added.
“This directly impacts a fundamental pillar of democracy: the integrity of free and fair elections,” said Verdier. “We thus caution against using AI chatbots for election recommendations, as their operation is unclear and difficult to verify.”
Voting Background and Political Landscape
The Dutch head to the polls on October 29 in an election that will be keenly observed around Europe for the showing of the PVV.
The right-leaning group of Geert Wilders is leading the polls but the gap to the left-wing and centre-right parties seems to be closing, with numerous electors yet to make up their minds.
Every significant political faction have ruled out an alliance with the PVV, meaning the runner-up party is highly probable to provide the next prime minister.
Unintentional Bias Linked to AI Operation
The AP stressed that the AI systems were not intentionally prejudiced, and that their “identified shortcomings” are a result of the way AI chatbots operate.
