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AI chatbots are proving to be “inaccurate and evidently prejudiced” when providing election recommendations, the Netherlands’ data watchdog has reported, issuing warnings about a possible risk to democracy just over a week before national elections.

Testing Reveals Repeated Partiality in Chatbot Recommendations

The four chatbots tested by the AP “frequently recommend identical two parties”, regardless of the voter’s inquiry or input, the watchdog noted in a report released ahead of the late October vote.

For over 50% of instances, the chatbot suggested either the right-wing PVV of Geert Wilders or the leftwing GroenLinks-PvdA led by the former European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans.

Some parties, such as the moderate CDA, “are almost never mentioned”, despite the fact that the user’s input precisely aligns with the positions of these political entities, the report pointed out.

Authority Figure Cautions Against Relying on AI Assistants for Voting Guidance

The vice-chair of the data protection agency, Monique Verdier, commented 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 emphasized.

“This directly impacts a cornerstone of democracy: the integrity of free and fair elections,” Verdier stated. “We thus caution against using AI chatbots for election recommendations, as their operation is unclear and difficult to verify.”

Voting Background and Party Dynamics

Netherlands citizens vote on 29 October in an electoral contest that will be closely watched around Europe for the performance of the Freedom party.

The right-leaning group 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 PVV, meaning the party that comes second is highly probable to provide the next prime minister.

Inadvertent Prejudice Linked to AI Operation

The authority stressed that the AI systems were not intentionally prejudiced, and that their “noted flaws” are a result of the manner in which AI assistants function.