Artificial intelligence is no longer just a visible campaign tactic used to generate images or videos. In US politics, it has become part of the machinery behind modern campaigns, helping staffers process voter information, write materials, study opponents and shape messages for narrow slices of the electorate.
That shift is creating a clear divide. American campaigns are adopting AI quickly, while Europe is building a more rule-bound system around political advertising, voter targeting and AI-generated public-interest content.
AI is moving into everyday campaign work
According to a New York Times report, Republican and Democratic campaigns now use AI at nearly every stage of campaign operations. The technology is being applied to tasks that are not always visible to voters, including data analysis, campaign materials and tailored outreach.
One example came from Pennsylvania's 10th Congressional District. Alex Bond, a 29-year-old voter, told canvassers from the Democratic group Swing Left that he thought AI was "terrible." He did not know that an AI-powered app would process his comments along with hundreds of similar conversations and turn them into campaign insights.
Violet Kopp, organizing director at Swing Left, described the logic behind that process to the New York Times: "Everything a person is saying is a data point." That sentence captures why AI is attractive to campaigns. It can turn scattered conversations, voter files and public information into organized signals that campaign teams can act on.
The scale of adoption is also striking. A survey by the newsletter Anchor Change found that 87 percent of campaign strategists now use AI daily. The New York Times report describes campaign managers using the technology for voter data analysis, campaign production and messages designed for micro-segments of voters.
Opposition research and messaging are changing
AI is also entering one of the most sensitive parts of political work: opposition research. The Democratic opposition research group American Bridge 21st Century used AI to vet roughly 250 Republican candidates, according to the report.
That kind of use shows why campaign AI is about more than public-facing content. The technology can help teams sort large amounts of information, identify useful material and speed up work that once required more manual review.
Campaigns are also using AI to produce or refine the materials that voters do see. The report says campaign managers are using AI to draft emails, create press releases, edit videos and craft messages for specific groups of voters.
Those uses raise a practical political problem. Many voters may dislike AI, but campaign staff may still see it as too useful to avoid. That tension makes AI a tool campaigns rely on, even when they do not want to advertise that reliance.
The parties face different political risks
AI adoption is not creating the same pressure inside both parties. Polls show Democratic voters are more skeptical of the technology than Republicans. Progressive groups have reported angry emails about AI use, and unionized staffers have raised concerns about jobs.
Republican strategists face less internal pushback, according to the New York Times report. That difference could matter because hesitation may slow adoption among Democrats, while Republicans may be more willing to work with privately funded companies.
Eric Wilson, a Republican strategist and director of the Center for Campaign Innovation, told the New York Times: "If voters don't like A.I., they don't want to know that their candidate's campaign is using A.I. to do stuff like draft emails or create press releases or edit videos. So you're just not going to see people bragging about it. But it is happening."
The disagreement extends to AI-generated videos of opponents. Wilson considers such videos acceptable if they reflect real statements. The National Democratic Training Committee rejects that kind of content because it "undermines democratic discourse and voter trust," according to the report.
The November midterms are widely seen as a test run for the AI strategies that will shape the 2028 presidential campaign. That means today’s campaign experiments could become the operating model for the next presidential cycle.
Europe is putting rules around political AI
Europe is taking a different approach. While US campaigns are using AI with little regulation, the EU is relying on transparency requirements and data protection.
Since October 2025, new rules for political advertising apply across the EU. Political ads must be clearly labeled and disclose who paid for them, which election they target and how much money was spent.
The rules also affect targeting. Political targeting requires explicit, separate consent from the people involved. Sensitive data such as political views or ethnic background cannot be used for profiling.
The AI Act will add another layer for future campaigns. Transparency requirements for generative AI take effect on August 2, 2026. After that date, deepfakes and AI-generated or AI-manipulated texts on topics of public interest must be clearly labeled in key cases.
The European Commission also published a voluntary code of practice for labeling AI-generated content in June 2026. Together, these measures point toward a campaign environment where AI use is not necessarily banned, but must be more visible and more tightly controlled.
Germany shows a smaller-scale version
AI had already appeared in Germany's 2025 federal election campaign, though on a smaller scale than in the US. According to ZDFheute, parties used AI for writing text, editing images, analyzing data and managing social media.
The CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia used an AI bot called "Conrad" to help staffers draft press releases and social media posts. The SPD, Greens and Left Party named AI as a writing aid, while the FDP and Left Party used it for image editing. The AfD used it for graphics and select video clips.
Germany also showed a more explicit role for self-regulation. In December 2024, the CDU, CSU, SPD, Greens, FDP and Left Party signed a fairness agreement. They pledged to clearly label AI-generated images, video and audio, and committed to not using deepfake technology to put words in opponents' mouths.
The AfD and BSW did not sign on. The AfD was classified by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency in May 2025 as a “confirmed right-wing extremist” organization, though the classification has been temporarily suspended pending a final court ruling. BSW is described as a left-wing populist party that combines left-leaning economic policies with a restrictive stance on immigration and a foreign policy that opposes arms deliveries to Ukraine, calls for negotiations with Russia and is sharply critical of NATO.
The larger picture is clear: AI is becoming a normal campaign tool, but political systems are responding differently. In the US, adoption is moving quickly inside campaign operations. In Europe, the emphasis is shifting toward labels, consent and limits on targeting before AI becomes even more deeply embedded in politics.