AI assistants are proving to be “unreliable and clearly biased” when providing election recommendations, the Netherlands’ data watchdog has reported, issuing warnings about a possible risk to democracy just eight days before national elections.
Testing Reveals Repeated Partiality in Chatbot Recommendations
The quartet of AI assistants tested by the AP “often end up with the same two parties”, regardless of the user’s question or command, the watchdog explained in a report published ahead of the 29 October election.
In more than half of the cases, the AI recommended either the right-wing PVV of Geert Wilders or the leftwing GroenLinks-PvdA led by the former European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans.
Certain groups, such as the moderate CDA, “are almost never mentioned”, despite the fact that the voter’s query precisely aligns with the positions of these political entities, the study pointed out.
Authority Figure Cautions Against Relying on AI Assistants for Voting Guidance
The deputy head of the data protection agency, Monique Verdier, commented that while AI assistants appear to be smart resources, “as a voting aid, they consistently fail”. Citizens were being steered toward a party that did not necessarily align with their ideological beliefs, she emphasized.
“This directly impacts 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 hard to confirm.”
Voting Background and Political Landscape
Netherlands citizens vote on 29 October in an election that will be closely watched across the continent for the showing of the PVV.
The right-leaning group of 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 ruled out an alliance with the PVV, implying the runner-up party is highly probable to provide the next prime minister.
Unintentional Bias Linked to Chatbot Functioning
The authority stressed that the AI systems were not intentionally prejudiced, and that their “noted flaws” are a result of the way AI chatbots operate.
