Political campaigns are deploying AI-powered bots to text thousands of voters simultaneously, answering policy questions and collecting data on voter concerns in real time. While supporters say this makes campaigns more interactive and responsive, critics worry bots could spread misinformation and mislead voters—especially since disclosure laws exist in only a few states. Republicans are adopting these tools faster than Democrats.
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AI-powered platforms are now training bots to conduct personalized text conversations with voters on behalf of political candidates. The bots answer questions on policy topics and collect data about voter concerns to shape future messaging. Convos, one such platform, helped 10 campaigns last year and is aiming to work with over 100 this year; Vector Political has sent 2.5 million text messages this year and conducted 20,000 to 30,000 conversations.
Why it matters
Political texting has become a primary way campaigns reach voters directly at scale since phone banks and door-to-door canvassing have declined. Generative AI bots respond within 30 seconds and can engage in longer conversations—about 5–10% of people respond to texts, and 10–20% of those engage in 10 or more texts—allowing campaigns to listen to voter concerns 'at a scale that campaigns have never listened at before.' However, ethics experts and some within the industry worry that bots could spread false information or be used deceptively, especially since disclosure laws are still being written in only a few states (North Dakota, California, and potentially New Jersey).
What to watch
Republicans are adopting these tools faster than Democrats, according to industry observers. Candidates are hesitant to publicly discuss their use of generative AI texting, citing both desire to protect their strategy and uncertainty about public perception. Currently, North Dakota and California require campaigns to disclose if voters are talking to virtual assistants in their first message.
Political campaigns have relied increasingly on text messaging since 2020, when live phone calling and door-to-door canvassing became less viable as a way to reach voters. Text messaging offers a direct channel to voters' phones that avoids algorithm-driven social media and the gatekeeping of tech platforms. Generative AI now automates the back-and-forth of these conversations, allowing a single bot to handle thousands of simultaneous voter interactions while gathering data on their priorities. Platforms like Convos and Vector Political are scaling rapidly, though the exact number of campaigns using these tools remains unclear.
The technology has created a tension within the political and tech communities. Proponents argue AI texting makes campaigns more interactive, personalized, and efficient—allowing candidates to "do more with less," as one Republican strategist put it. Critics, however, raise serious concerns: bots could provide false information, be manipulated to say harmful things in a candidate's voice, or deceive voters into thinking they are communicating with a human. The opacity is particularly troubling because candidates are reluctant to publicly discuss their use of these tools, citing both competitive secrecy and uncertainty about public perception. Only a handful of states have begun requiring disclosure of AI involvement in campaign messaging, leaving most voters with no way to know whether they are speaking to a person or a bot.
The political divide in adoption reflects broader concerns: Democrats worry about AI's environmental footprint and labor impact, while Republicans prioritize implementation. This gap suggests that as disclosure laws remain sparse and public opinion uncertain, the campaigns using AI most aggressively may be those with fewer reservations about transparency—a dynamic that could widen the asymmetry between the two parties' use of the technology.
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