Pa. law doesn’t regulate AI-generated candidates in election ads, but some hope to change that

This story was originally published by WPSU.

The midterm elections are less than a week away, and one recent political ad in Pennsylvania is raising questions about the legality of using AI deepfakes.

The Republican challenger for governor, Stacy Garrity, recently released an AI-generated video of her opponent, Democratic incumbent Josh Shapiro. The ad begins with what appears to be Shapiro grinning as he opens the doors to the governor’s office. There’s a desk behind him with the American and Pennsylvania flags on either side.

”Hello there. I’m Josh Shapiro, and I’ve been very busy. It started with all those sexual harassment scandals,” the AI Shapiro says in the ad.

The video continues with Shapiro pointing to a real New York Times article, with the headline: “Shapiro Faces Scrutiny Over Sexual Harassment Complaint Against Aide.”

There’s no watermark or text on the screen telling viewers that the video is artificially produced, and the AI Shapiro in the ad doesn’t disclose that he isn’t the real Josh Shapiro until about 45 seconds in.

“This ad was created with AI, thanks to big beautiful data centers,” the AI Shapiro says near the end of the ad.

A spokesperson for the real Shapiro called the ad “cheap” and “dishonest” in a statement to Axios, while Garrity told KDKA-TV that she stands by the ad.

Currently, there are no laws in Pennsylvania prohibiting deepfakes in political ads or even requiring a disclaimer.

In May, state Sen. Lisa Boscola shared a memo saying she plans to introduce legislation that would prohibit AI-generated or AI-altered video, audio or images of a candidate during the 90 days before an election. That bill hasn’t yet been introduced. Last year, the state House approved a separate bill to regulate deepfakes in campaign ads, but the bill didn’t make it past the state Senate.

Several surrounding states, including Delaware, Maryland and New York have laws either prohibiting election deepfakes or requiring a disclaimer that the content is AI-generated.