AI disinformation: The election campaign threat that has parties worried

More work is needed to counter disinformation generated by artificial intelligence, a review of Labor’s landslide federal election victory has found.

While praising the campaign that delivered Anthony Albanese 94 seats in the House of Representatives and badly damaged the Liberals and the Greens, the review shows Labor has a number of areas to work on before the next election.

The four-person review panel found AI was used by Labor’s opponents to spread disinformation during the 2025 campaign.

This included unlabelled AI-generated videos and images for posters and online content.

“International evidence shows that AI fundamentally lowers the cost and increases the scale of disinformation operations,” the review handed down on Friday by Labor national president Wayne Swan said.

“Increasingly, people cannot tell authentic from manufactured information.”

The review identified a shift away from obvious viral AI content with campaigners now creating thousands of slightly different versions of the same message, which are harder to detect.

It warned the Electoral Commission only has limited powers to crack down on computer-generated disinformation.

Broadly, the review found that while Labor ran a successful, targeted campaign, the actions of the opposition helped the government return to power.

“Post-election research showed voters felt that the coalition was out of touch, ran a poor campaign and did not offer meaningful solutions to Australia’s key challenges,” the document said.

In particular, voters were concerned about the cost and long timelines associated with the coalition’s nuclear plan, the review found.

They were also unhappy with then-opposition leader Peter Dutton’s promise to scrap working from home rights for public servants, which was eventually abandoned.

“Rather than a retrospective referendum, Labor turned the election into a contest over which party would make Australians better off in three years’ time,” the reviewers said.

“This put the onus on the Liberal Party to detail their plans and present Australians with a viable alternative, and they failed this test.”

Labor’s review was written by former Victorian Labor secretary Chris Ford, Australian Services Union secretary Emeline Gaske, former WA Labor official Lenda Oshalem and strategic advisor Moksha Watts.

The four reviewers warned Labor must deliver on its promises over the next two years to build the foundations for its next election campaign.

“Delivery is not optional; it is the cornerstone of Labor’s agenda and will shape our bid for a third term,” they said.

They also raised concerns about the prospect for more three-cornered contests - where government, opposition and independent or third-party candidates all have a reasonable chance of winning a seat.

The review warns Labor needs to be alert to independent challengers, who can seize on local issues to run a successful campaign.

“There is no such thing as a safe seat and campaigns must be attuned to the likelihood of three-cornered contests regardless of where they currently sit on the 2025 post-election pendulum,” the report said.

The Liberals have also produced a campaign review, but its release has reportedly been delayed because Mr Dutton claims parts of it could be defamatory towards him and his former staff.