AI Chatbots Provide ‘Unreliable and Biased’ Voting Advice, States Dutch Watchdog

AI chatbots have been shown 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 the country’s general election.

Testing Reveals Repeated Partiality in Chatbot Recommendations

The four chatbots tested by the AP “often end up with the same two parties”, irrespective of the user’s question or command, 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 right-wing PVV of Geert Wilders or the progressive GroenLinks-PvdA headed by the former European Commission vice-president Frans Timmermans.

Certain groups, such as the moderate CDA, “are almost never mentioned”, even when the voter’s query exactly matches the stances of these political entities, the report indicated.

Authority Figure Cautions Against Relying on AI Assistants for Voting Guidance

The vice-chair 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 party that did not necessarily align with their political views, she added.

“This directly impacts a cornerstone of democracy: the honesty of open and just votes,” said Verdier. “We thus caution 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 across the continent for the showing of the Freedom party.

The far-right party of Geert Wilders is leading the polls but the lead over the GroenLinks-PvdA and CDA appears to be narrowing, with numerous electors still undecided.

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