AI campaign deepfakes are starting to draw legal threats

AxiosOctober 2, 2026en

Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) was hit with a cease-and-desist letter this week over an AI deepfake he posted falsely depicting his Democratic opponent voicing positions her campaign says she rejects. Why it matters: Van Orden is the latest in a growing number of candidates and elected officials facing legal complaints and threats over AI deepfakes in campaign ads. Driving the news: Attorneys for Rebecca Cooke, Van Orden's Democratic opponent, sent him a cease-and-desist letter on Wednesday over his "pattern of posting misleading AI-generated videos that falsely attribute statements to Cooke." The letter singled out an August X post by Van Orden showing an AI-generated Cooke saying she want

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