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AI assistants are proving 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 democracy just over a week before the country’s general election.

Study Shows Consistent Bias in Chatbot Recommendations

The four chatbots tested by the authority “often end up with the same two parties”, regardless of the user’s question or command, the regulator explained 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 centre-right CDA, “are almost never mentioned”, even when the voter’s query exactly matches the positions of these political entities, the report indicated.

Authority Figure Cautions Against Relying on AI Assistants for Voting Guidance

The deputy head of the data protection agency, Monique Verdier, stated that while chatbots may seem like clever tools, “as a voting aid, they consistently fail”. Citizens were being steered toward a party that did not necessarily align with their ideological beliefs, she added.

“This directly impacts a cornerstone of democracy: the honesty of open and just votes,” said Verdier. “We thus caution against employing AI assistants for election recommendations, as their functioning is opaque and difficult to verify.”

Election Context and Political Landscape

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

The far-right party of Geert Wilders is ahead in surveys but the lead over the left-wing and centre-right parties seems to be closing, with numerous electors yet to make up their minds.

All major parties have rejected a coalition with the Freedom party, implying the party that comes second is highly probable to provide the next prime minister.

Unintentional Bias Linked to Chatbot Functioning

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