New Zealand’s main political parties have struck an unusual line of agreement ahead of this year’s election, saying artificial intelligence must not be deployed to mislead voters, but differ in their approaches to how it will be used during the 2026 election.
Some political parties have completely ruled out generative AI. Some support limited or clearly labeled uses. Some believe there is value in using AI to support campaign efforts, as long as humans can control it. One political party says its MPs have been targeted by AI-fabricated content aimed at stirring up racial tensions.
Here are the political parties’ positions on the use of AI in their 2026 election campaigns.
National takes a cautious approach and promises clear labeling
National said AI-generated content could appear in social media posts.
“National occasionally uses AI-generated content on social media. We strive to ensure this content is marked as such,” a party spokesperson told 1News.
During the 2023 election, National admitted using artificial intelligence to generate characters in ads attacking the then Labor government.
The party said it would not tolerate the use of AI to portray real people in a misleading manner.
“Unfortunately, we have indeed seen this type of content from others and expect to see it during the election period,” the spokesperson added.
“We strongly encourage people to keep in mind that not all content they see is genuine and thoroughly check their facts before engaging with any content.”
Workers adopt a trust-first attitude and avoid AI-generated visuals
Labor has said it will take a trust-first approach to artificial intelligence in this year’s election.
Campaign manager Beth Houston said the party wants to make sure voters understand they are looking at real content, not manipulated or synthetic content.
“Our priority is to ensure the public can continue to trust the information they receive during elections. Labor does not use AI to generate images or videos. We are focused on real engagement with voters.”
She told 1News political parties should reveal when AI was used to generate images and videos.
“Misinformation of any kind is always a concern. Using AI to generate political messages aimed at misleading voters undermines trust and transparency.”
ACT uses AI to draft and survey under human supervision
ACT said it leveraged artificial intelligence to assist with drafting, content creation and policy research.
Campaign Manager Callum Purves said: “All AI-powered material is thoroughly reviewed, fact-checked and edited by our team before being released to the wider public.”
He said ACT would expect political parties to disclose when AI was used to create election materials where it could be misleading.
“As a general rule, ACT does not use AI to generate fake images of real people. We also use AI as a tool to complement our library of photos and stock images, but we prefer to use real photos wherever possible. We believe New Zealand’s challenges are serious enough to merit human intervention.”
He added that ACT is concerned about the potential for AI to mislead voters during election campaigns, and that “bad actors who use AI to spread false information should be held accountable by the Electoral Commission and the media.”
Green Party rejects generative AI outright due to ethical concerns
The Green Party has the strongest anti-AI stance, pledging not to use generated AI content in its 2026 election campaign.
“We have ethical, privacy and environmental concerns about the use of generative AI and the tech giants and billionaires who are pushing it…We have no plans to use generative AI to create campaign materials,” a spokesperson told 1News, adding that they would rely on human artists and creators.
The Green Party said it was “impossible” to ensure that AI tools were not used in election campaigns, but that it would encourage staff to avoid them wherever possible.
“The Green Party recognizes that the prevalence of AI makes it difficult to reveal the extent of its use, but we expect parties to be transparent about how they use AI and avoid misleading the public,” a spokesperson said.
“We also want all political parties to work together to denounce misinformation and deepfakes during elections. It is important that the public can trust the information they see.”
New Zealand rolls out for limited use for the first time, eliminating AI in messaging
New Zealand First said it was open to the “limited responsible use” of AI for creative visuals such as memes and images, but not for strategy or messaging.
“We will not use AI to draft any scripts, strategies, slogans or messages, and certainly not to create misleading deepfakes of politicians or political parties,” campaign manager Darroch Ball told 1News, adding that anything created with AI would be publicly labeled as such.
He said New Zealand First was “certainly wary” of the potential for AI to be used to create disinformation and deepfakes, and “certainly wary” of the potential for artificial intelligence to be deliberately used to demonstrate actions and words that have never been created or spoken before.
He said: “The biggest concern in this regard is the widespread use of AI online, not by other political parties, but through the use of social media posts.”
“This type of intentional misuse of AI for the sole purpose of creating misleading and false images, audio and clips of politicians is extremely concerning and I think will be a unique challenge for this election.”
Te Pati Māori warns AI is already harming Māori communities
Te Pāti Maori says the use of artificial intelligence must be based on tikanga and data sovereignty.
The party says AI is already being weaponized against MPs and the Māori community, and a spokesperson told 1News the party is frequently targeted with fabricated images and posts.
“As an Indigenous party, our MPs are constantly subject to fake AI images and articles aimed at stirring up anti-Māori sentiment for political gain. This causes direct harm to the communities we represent,” the spokesperson said.
The party acknowledges that AI is now “part of the political landscape” but insists its use must be responsible, transparent and disclosed and must not violate tikanga.
“We do not support the use of AI to spread misinformation, demean political discourse, or reproduce images of people, art or Māori mātauranga. The speed at which AI produces misinformation also poses risks to democracy and causes real harm to marginalized communities, who are most often the targets of online abuse.”
The election will be held on November 7th, and overseas voting is scheduled to begin on October 21st.
