Politics

California is drowning in internet campaign ‘slop.’ 2028 is next.

By rivo_admin · June 1, 2026 · 15 min read

SACRAMENTO, California — Influencers and AI-generated political ads are exploding in the midterms in California. And campaign laws are struggling to compete — a warning sign for how difficult those forces may be to contain in 2028.

In the run-up to Tuesday’s primary, gubernatorial candidates are accusing each other of buying support from social media influencers without disclosing payments as required under state law. Meanwhile, former reality TV star Spencer Pratt is testing the state’s deepfake labeling rules","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-playbook-pm/2026/05/20/pratt-ai-campaign-videos-00930357","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0000","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0001","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>testing the state’s deepfake labeling rules as he mounts an insurgent bid for Los Angeles mayor on the back of fan-made artificial intelligence videos trashing incumbent Karen Bass.

“It’s going to be a bunch of slop that’s going to be all over our elections and our campaigns,” said John Bennett, director of the nonprofit California Initiative for Technology and Democracy. “Slop is not good for democracy.”

Ahead of this year’s elections, the Golden State thought it was prepared to regulate a new wave of internet activity on the campaign trail. But the novel tactics are exploiting glaring weaknesses in California’s ability to check the vast ecosystem of fast-improving AI features and content-farming tools at candidates’ disposal, according to campaign operatives, state lawmakers and election ethics experts.

They predict that the influx of influencer payments and AI media in California’s primaries is just a taste of what voters could see on the federal level — where regulations are broadly weaker than in California — during the 2028 presidential race.

AI content is already a magnet for engagement and an increasingly prevalent tool to hit an opponent, crack a joke or illustrate a point to voters. Donald Trump and Gavin Newsom — two of the most prominent politicians nationally — have repeatedly posted AI images on social media trashing each other and their detractors.

It’s a phenomenon surging across the country. In Rep. Thomas Massie’s recent Kentucky Republican primary, a GOP-aligned super PAC ran","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://x.com/AdImpact_Pol/status/2051314128468197851","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0002","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0003","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>a GOP-aligned super PAC ran an AI ad that depicted the now-defeated House member in a “throuple” with ultra-progressive Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, holding hands with the duo on the National Mall and checking into a hotel room.

“When you have candidates like Donald Trump who have no scruples, who knows what they would use the technology for?” said Mark Longabaugh, a Democratic consultant","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.politico.com/news/2025/01/30/mark-longabaugh-joe-caiazzo-firm-00201437","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0004","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0005","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>a Democratic consultant and top strategist for Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign. “Certainly by [20]28 it’s going to be rampant, and it’s something we’re all going to have to deal with.”

AI’s rapidly expanding capabilities could also make it easier than ever for cash-strapped, upstart campaigns to churn out content at minimal cost, effectively democratizing the ability to cut ads, Longabaugh and Bennett said. In past years, campaigns needed to pay camera crews, hire actors or spend hours sifting through backlogs of stock footage. With AI, they can conjure the images they want with a few prompts, making lean “do-it-yourself” campaigning more practical than ever before.

An example of that is playing out in California, where viral, fan-made AI videos depicting Pratt as Batman and Luke Skywalker helped his upstart campaign attract national attention and earned media. He’s built momentum","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/22/spencer-pratt-la-mayor-campaign-momentum-00933397","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0006","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0007","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>built momentum despite being a Republican outsider in the deep-blue city, with recent polling","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.politico.com/news/2026/05/28/la-mayor-poll-bass-vulnerable-close-race-raman-pratt-00941128","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0008","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0009","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>recent polling showing him neck-and-neck alongside Bass and Democratic contender Nithya Raman.

In a recent interview with CNN","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJVQeeeFJck","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d000b","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d000c","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>recent interview with CNN, Pratt suggested the ads speak to people’s feelings toward the mayor after deadly wildfires ravaged LA last year, specifically referencing the Batman ad where people threw tomatoes at an AI depiction of Bass as the Joker. “For the families of the 12 people she let burn … they would probably say, ‘Oh yeah, she probably deserved a tomato,’” he said.

Bass has accused","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/13/politics/video/la-mayor-spencer-pratt-ai-videos-ldn-digvid-vrtc","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d000d","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d000e","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>has accused the reality TV star of promoting violence and hate.

But Paul Maslin, a longtime Democratic pollster who’s worked on presidential campaigns, framed AI campaigning as a game theory problem. Candidates who avoid the technology, particularly if their opponent is firing off hundreds of AI-generated videos and images, risk putting themselves behind the curve, he said.

“Water flows downhill, right?” Maslin said. “Ultimately, you can’t stop this.”

Recent history shows a clear trend: campaigns that embrace new tech trends — Barack Obama with social media in 2008 or Trump with online podcasts in 2024 — often end up winning. And with AI at this point, Maslin said, the “horse is so far out of the barn.”

Influencer-based campaign strategies have been around longer, as evidenced by Trump’s 2024 win, but they’ve grown more sophisticated recently. The vast and expanding number of content creators on different sites who rely on paid partnerships to make money now offers campaigns plentiful options, and as internet-age kids become adults, working with influencers is an increasingly fruitful way to reach new voters.

The Federal Election Commission requires nationwide campaigns to disclose spending on influencers, but unlike California, the body doesn’t currently require disclosures from the influencers","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.culawreview.org/journal/consumer-protection-voter-deception-the-double-standard-of-social-media-influencer-disclaimer-requirements","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d000f","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0010","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>doesn’t currently require disclosures from the influencers — nor does it mandate labeling for AI-generated deepfakes.

In California’s gubernatorial primary, an independent expenditure committee supporting San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan reported payments to influencers in a recent filing","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/PDFGen/pdfgen.prg?filingid=3138682&amendid=0","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0011","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8d0012","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>a recent filing. And billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, armed with more than $200 million the Democrat put behind his own campaign, has reportedly paid thousands of dollars to influencers","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/16/business/media/influencers-political-financing-disclosure.html","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0000","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0001","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>has reportedly paid thousands of dollars to influencers who posted positive things about him on social media.

Steyer’s contributions have received heightened scrutiny because certain accounts posting about him are accused of failing to disclose payments from his campaign, and because the former hedge fund manager is aggressively positioning himself as a progressive populist.

“That’s manufacturing social proof, and trying to manufacture an environment where people want to vote for Tom,” said Kaitlyn Hennessy, a social media content creator and small business operator. Hennessy and her fellow creator Beatrice Gomberg recently filed an official complaint","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000019e-7610-db8d-a5df-77dbc9dd0000","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0002","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0003","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>filed an official complaint alleging a handful of influencers backing Steyer didn’t disclose receiving payments from his campaign, in potential violation of California law.

The two creators said they support Xavier Becerra but aren’t paid by the former Health and Human Services secretary’s campaign.

Steyer insists the complaint is “meritless” and rejects claims that he paid for endorsement. He told reporters last week","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5uV3IIep7w","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0004","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0005","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>told reporters last week that his campaign pays influencers “for their time” and that “creators have worked with us because they like our policies.” His team has in turn accused Becerra’s campaign of obscuring its involvement with influencers","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article315864270.html","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0006","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0007","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>obscuring its involvement with influencers and benefitting from a bot-driven engagement campaign","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://x.com/KevinLiao_/status/2057640507715838124?s=20","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0008","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0009","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>benefitting from a bot-driven engagement campaign on social media platforms like Threads — claims the Becerra campaign denies.

But while influencer engagement and AI spread across the country, California is laying bare the limits of efforts to regulate the practices. Lawmakers in the nation’s most populous state approved a rule in 2023","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB678","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e000a","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e000b","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>approved a rule in 2023 that requires campaigns and influencers to disclose paid content partnerships, and have more recently passed cutting-edge laws aimed at regulating AI-generated content and deepfakes in politics.

However, two of the state’s most restrictive political deepfake measures were frozen in court","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/05/elon-musk-x-court-win-california-deepfake-law-00494936","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e000d","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e000e","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>were frozen in court after Elon Musk’s X and conservative social media influencers sued on free speech grounds. The remaining laws have been challenging to enforce, as even the lawmakers who authored the rules admit.

“The laws that we have passed are technical,” said state Sen. Tom Umberg, a Democrat who authored the influencer payments disclosure law. “It’s not like simply arresting a bank robber, where you’ve got a video. It is more challenging.”

California’s influencer payments and AI advertising disclosure laws, for example, are enforced by the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission, which relies on public complaints to tip off investigators.

The commission has also said it needs new software and AI-detection resources to enforce disclosure rules. It’s asked state leaders for at least $360,000 in additional cash","link":{"target":"NEW","attributes":[],"url":"https://bcp.dof.ca.gov/2627/FY2627_ORG8620_BCP8674.pdf","_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e000f","_type":"33ac701a-72c1-316a-a3a5-13918cf384df"},"_id":"0000019e-848d-d36f-abdf-ffdd5d8e0010","_type":"02ec1f82-5e56-3b8c-af6e-6fc7c8772266"}”>asked state leaders for at least $360,000 in additional cash through June 2027, which Newsom included in his most recent spending plan. But the money isn’t guaranteed to make the final budget yet, and funding requests are facing significant scrutiny this year because the governor, a likely presidential contender, and lawmakers have vowed to limit new expenses.

And then there’s the bigger-picture issue lawmakers and political professionals are grappling with about where to draw the line on what types of AI uses are ethical and which ones are misinformation. Candidates have used the tools in obviously satirical ways, but in some instances, the line between satire and misinformation is fuzzy, like with a fan-made Pratt video that depicts an AI-created Bass walking around a fire-torn LA, bragging tongue-in-cheek about her “accomplishments” on homelessness and drug use, among other issues.

“There are good uses for AI in ad-making today, and I think there are some that are nefarious and unethical, but in some ways that’s always kind of been there in the advertising business,“ Longabaugh said. “Trying to regulate AI imagery … I just think it’s gonna be very, very tough to do that.”

Jeremy B. White contributed to this report.

المصدر: Politico

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