Spain's People's party publishes an AI-generated campaign video before next month's general election

24 October 2026

Spain's conservative People's party launched a video across its social media channels in the week to 24 October 2026 that used artificial intelligence to manipulate the likenesses of people linked to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's Socialist party. An AI-generated version of Sanchez's wife, Begona Gomez, speaks about receiving a university post, and a deepfake of former Socialist prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero speaks about hiding jewellery in a safe. Both Gomez and Zapatero have denied any wrongdoing in the investigations the lines refer to. The video had recorded nearly two million views by Friday. Spain's digital transformation minister Oscar Lopez told the broadcaster TVE that it was telling people a colossal lie and that it is very easy for anyone not used to AI to confuse the video with reality. The video carried a note at the bottom stating it had been created with AI. A majority of nine legal experts consulted by the newspaper El Pais held that what the party had done was not illegal, given the AI label and the satirical tone.