The NYT report paints a picture of a deep shift in American campaigning. According to a survey by the newsletter Anchor Change, 87 percent of campaign strategists now use AI daily. Beyond the publicly visible layer of AI-generated images and videos, campaign managers have woven the technology into nearly every workflow, the New York Times reports. They're analyzing voter data, producing campaign materials, and crafting tailored messages for micro-segments of the electorate. The Democratic opposition research group American Bridge 21st Century used AI to vet roughly 250 Republican candidates, according to the report.
Both parties are all in on AI, but they play by different rules
Despite the boom, AI remains a political risk, the New York Times reports. Polls show that Democratic voters are more skeptical of the technology than Republicans. Progressive groups report angry emails about AI use, and unionized staffers worry about their jobs. Republican strategists, by contrast, face less internal pushback.
"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," Republican strategist Eric Wilson, director of the Center for Campaign Innovation, told the New York Times. Wilson considers AI-generated videos of opponents acceptable as long as they reflect real statements. The National Democratic Training Committee, on the other hand, rejects such content outright because it "undermines democratic discourse and voter trust," according to the report.
