AI-Doctored Video of Campaign Broadcast Goes Viral; Expert Warns of Possible Distortion to Election

By Rio Fukumoto / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

7:00 JST, February 2, 2026

A doctored version of a “campaign broadcast” by the Centrist Reform Alliance for the Feb. 8 House of Representatives election has gone viral on the X social media network.

Altered via artificial intelligence to show the party’s co-chairmen Yoshihiko Noda and Tetsuo Saito dancing together, the video has been viewed more than 1.6 million times. Experts are warning that the alteration of such broadcasts could affect the judgment of voters and distort the election.

Candidates for national and gubernatorial elections, political parties and political organizations use campaign broadcasts, which are disseminated on TV and radio, to present their platforms. The Public Offices Election Law stipulates that they must be broadcast unedited, but there is no provision prohibiting voters from altering the content and posting it on social media.

In the original campaign broadcast, Noda and Saito advocate their policies and call in unison for voters to vote for their party. They then bow to a sign language interpreter. The altered footage has the two men push over the podium, stand up and dance with a fan in their hands.

The altered video was posted on Friday morning by a personal account purportedly located in Japan and had been viewed more than 1.6 million times by around noon Saturday. A number of viewers posted critical comments, saying it would cast a shadow over the fairness of the election.

The account deleted the video in question around Saturday noon and posted a comment saying that the footage had been altered through AI. The account owner apologized, saying the video was extremely inconsiderate and inappropriate, and that they had simply intended to be funny.

The Yomiuri Shimbun requested an interview with the account owner but had not received a response as of 7 p.m. Saturday.

A spokesperson for the Centrist Reform Alliance told The Yomiuri Shimbun, “We are extremely disappointed, as it runs counter to the purpose of campaign broadcasts to covey the views of a political party.”

In a separate case related to the ongoing election, footage of a candidate from another opposition party waving their hands on the street before the official kickoff of campaigning was altered via generative AI to show them in a tank top.

“If fake videos of campaign broadcasts are created, viewers could easily believe that the content is real. If political claims, policies and facts are altered, this could affect voters’ judgment and distort the election,” said Harumichi Yuasa, a professor of information law at Meiji University and an expert on election systems.

“Under the current law, it’s illegal to tear down an election poster but the law does not address the internet being flooded with misinformation and disinformation from AI. The law needs to be reviewed in line with reality,” Yuasa said.