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AI chatbots have been shown to be “inaccurate and evidently prejudiced” when providing election recommendations, the Dutch data protection authority (AP) has stated, raising alarms about a potential threat to democratic processes just eight days before the country’s general election.

Study Shows Consistent Bias in Chatbot Recommendations

The quartet of AI assistants evaluated by the AP “often end up with the same two parties”, irrespective of the user’s question or command, the regulator noted in a report released 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 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 precisely aligns with the stances of these political entities, the study pointed out.

Authority Figure Cautions Against Relying on AI Assistants for Election Advice

The deputy head of the data protection agency, Monique Verdier, stated that while AI assistants appear to be smart resources, “as a voting aid, they consistently fail”. Voters were being pushed toward a political group that might not correspond to their ideological beliefs, she added.

“This immediately affects a cornerstone of democracy: the integrity of free and fair elections,” Verdier stated. “We therefore warn against using AI chatbots for election recommendations, as their operation is unclear and hard to confirm.”

Voting Background and Political Landscape

The Dutch head to the polls on 29 October in an electoral contest that will be keenly observed around Europe for the performance of the Freedom party.

The right-leaning group of Geert Wilders is leading the polls but the lead over the left-wing and centre-right parties appears to be narrowing, with many voters yet to make up their minds.

Every significant political faction have ruled out an alliance with the Freedom party, implying the runner-up party is highly probable to provide the next prime minister.

Inadvertent Prejudice Linked to AI Operation

The AP stressed that the bots were not deliberately biased, and that their “identified shortcomings” are a consequence of the way AI chatbots operate.