AI assistants are proving to be “inaccurate and evidently prejudiced” when offering voting advice, the Netherlands’ data watchdog has reported, issuing warnings about a potential threat to democratic processes just eight days before national elections.
Study Shows Consistent Bias in AI Suggestions
The quartet of AI assistants evaluated by the authority “often end up with the same two parties”, regardless of the voter’s inquiry or input, the watchdog noted in a report published ahead of the late October vote.
In more than half of the cases, the AI recommended either the far-right Freedom party (PVV) of Geert Wilders or the leftwing GroenLinks-PvdA headed by the ex-EU commissioner Frans Timmermans.
Some parties, such as the centre-right CDA, “are almost never mentioned”, despite the fact that the voter’s query precisely aligns with the stances of these political entities, the study indicated.
Authority Figure Cautions Against Relying on AI Assistants for Election Advice
The deputy head of the data protection agency, the official Monique Verdier, stated that while AI assistants appear to be smart resources, “for election guidance, they repeatedly fall short”. Citizens were being steered toward a political group that might not correspond to their ideological beliefs, she emphasized.
“This immediately affects a fundamental pillar of democracy: the honesty of open and just votes,” Verdier stated. “We thus caution against employing AI assistants for election recommendations, as their functioning is opaque and difficult to verify.”
Voting Background and Political Landscape
Netherlands citizens vote on October 29 in an electoral contest that will be keenly observed across the continent for the showing of the Freedom party.
The far-right party of Geert Wilders is ahead in surveys but the gap to the GroenLinks-PvdA and CDA seems to be closing, with many voters still undecided.
All major parties have rejected a coalition with the Freedom party, meaning the party that comes second is most likely to provide the next prime minister.
Unintentional Bias Linked to Chatbot Functioning
The authority stressed that the bots were not deliberately biased, and that their “identified shortcomings” are a consequence of the way AI chatbots operate.
