No rules for AI ads in the heartland
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Kansas and Missouri are among 19 states that don't regulate AI-generated political ads, which have already appeared in races from the U.S. Senate to the Missouri House.
Why it matters: AI-generated political ads are becoming more common, but Kansas and Missouri have no rules requiring campaigns to tell voters what's fake.
By the numbers: Wesleyan Media Project tracked 10 AI-generated ads in Kansas and three in Missouri through Oct. 11, according to data shared with Axios.
- Around $7 million was spent airing the Kansas ads and around $1.5 million on Missouri's, Wesleyan co-director Travis Ridout says.
- Beyond the Senate race, they include ads in the Kansas attorney general race and a Missouri House race.
Zoom in: The project, which tracks political ads, flagged an AI-generated ad in Kansas' U.S. Senate race from Senate Leadership Fund, the Republican-aligned super PAC that has run undisclosed AI deepfakes of Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff.
- Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton's campaign says Republican Sen. Roger Marshall and a pro-Marshall super PAC, Main Street Fund, have used AI-generated images of Hamilton. Marshall's campaign didn't respond to Axios' requests for comment.
- Hamilton's campaign tells Axios it used an AI voice-over in one Meta ad but no AI in its TV ads, and it supports a federal law requiring AI disclosure.
Zoom out: Campaigns and PACs nationwide spent around $137 million on 220 AI-generated ads through Oct. 11, mostly from Republicans, Wesleyan found.
- Four states ban certain AI deepfakes in political ads and 27 more require some disclosure, but no federal law specifically regulates them.
State of play: Kansas lawmakers considered a 2024 bill making it illegal to use AI to falsely depict candidates without disclosing it, but it stalled in the House.
- The secretary of state's office testified in favor and would support a similar bill, deputy communications director Thomas Treacy tells Axios.
- The Kansas Public Disclosure Commission can review an ad's "paid for by" line, but "we do not regulate the truthfulness of political ads," executive director Anne Spiess tells Axios.
In Missouri, Grain Valley Republican Sen. Joe Nicola filed bills in 2025 and 2026 to require AI disclaimers on political ads, but neither became law.
- The Missouri Ethics Commission confirms the state has no law on AI in campaign ads.
How to spot one: Look for a well-known person doing something they never did or a stylized, cartoon-like look, Ridout says.
- News coverage can also help, since candidates often call out AI ads made about them.
What's next: Kansas' secretary of state and Missouri Sen. Joe Nicola want lawmakers to reconsider AI disclosure requirements when they return in January.