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Today’s newsletter is 1,028 words — a 4-minute read.

A doctored video of Washington County chair candidate Nafisa Fai speaking in front of an upside-down American flag went viral last week, sparking outrage on social media and leading to calls for her deportation, according to the Oregon Journalism Project.

Why it matters: Fai's team provided OJP screenshots showing the flag was right-side up, but the viral moment signals how AI-assisted attack ads are putting words in candidates' mouths and creating realistic but fabricated scenes.

• It's a phenomenon testing election laws here and across the country.

Zoom in: Oregon Senate Bill 1571, passed in 2024, requires political campaign communications to disclose AI-manipulated images, audio or video realistically depicting someone saying or doing something that never happened.

• Violators face civil penalties of up to $10,000, though the law exempts satire and parody.

Flashback: Ads run by Jonathan Lockwood, who unsuccessfully ran to unseat Oregon Democratic U.S. Rep. Janelle Bynum, prompted a complaint and an investigation by the Secretary of State's Office this year.

• One ad showed Bynum and Gov. Tina Kotek with glowing red eyes chasing a group of scared children.

Yes, but: Whether the altered video of Fai violates the law is unclear, since not all misleading political content qualifies as campaign communication.

• The 26-second clip was posted by End Wokeness, a right-wing X account with 3.9 million followers, and amplified by other prominent conservative accounts, according to OJP.
• The original footage showed the flag right-side up. The clip also selectively highlighted several English phrases from her speech at a Minnesota event.

Between the lines: More than $137 million had been spent on 220 AI-generated or AI-enhanced political ads through Oct. 11, mostly by Republican-aligned advertisers, per the Wesleyan Media Project.

• Four states have laws prohibiting certain uses of AI-generated deepfakes in political ads, while 27 more, including Oregon, require some form of disclosure about their use.
• No federal law specifically regulates AI-generated political ads.

The big picture: An Axios analysis found numerous political ads partly or fully made by generative AI, which was sometimes undisclosed.

Go deeper: The AI attack-ad nightmare is coming true

If it's felt abnormally warm and dry in Portland this month, it's not just you.

• We're way behind on October rainfall during the month that typically sees a shift to a wetter weather pattern.

By the numbers: The National Weather Service has measured just 0.11 inches of rain at PDX this month.

• That's 1.55 inches less than we usually see by this time of the month, good for the seventh-driest October on records that go back 86 years.
• We've also seen an average high of 73°F, the fifth-highest average temperature over that same time.

The big picture: The slow start to rainy season comes after a record-breaking winter, marked by a paltry snowpack that helped fuel the state's worst wildfire season in terms of acres burned.

• Forecasters have been warning for months that a potentially historic El Niño brewing in the Pacific Ocean could mean a warmer, wetter winter in Oregon over the coming months.
• We've got the warmer part dialed in, but we're still waiting for things to get wetter.

What's next: Much of the coming week is expected to be dry with above-average temps, per the NWS.

• But that could change toward the end of the week when the season's first atmospheric river could drop down from the Gulf of Alaska, bringing lower temperatures and "significant" rain.
• "Uncertainty remains high at this time," NWS forecasters said, however, so we'll have to keep our fingers crossed.

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🐓 "Stranger Things" actor Finn Wolfhard visited downtown's Nong's Khao Man Gai when he was in town for a pair of sold-out shows at the Hawthorne Theatre over the weekend. (The Oregonian)

🥐 The time has come: JinJu Patisserie 2.0 will host its "soft opening" starting tomorrow, with an expanded menu including revamped pastries and Korean-inspired salt breads. Get in line for those croissants now. (Portland Monthly)

📻 Listen to the three candidates running for Multnomah County Chair — Julia Brim-Edwards, Sharon Meieran and Shannon Singleton — make the case for why they think they should get the job. (OPB)

🏗️ Plans to transform 10 blocks along the Willamette near OMSI into a neighborhood with housing, shops and public spaces are moving forward, with developers now seeking designers for a waterfront park and district identity plan. (Portland Business Journal)

One of the very few — and admittedly trivial — downsides to living in a vote-by-mail state is the lack of a physical "I voted" sticker to note your contribution to our 250-year-old democratic experiment.

Why it matters: In the grander scheme of things it doesn't really, but the map above made me a little jealous of sticker-getting voters in other states.

• In Wyoming, you get a bucking bronco to affix to your lapel.
• Colorado voters also get a horse sticker, even if its weird and a little creepy.
• When you vote in Louisiana, you get a fun sticker featuring a trumpet with flowers coming out of the horn.

Yes, but: You can snag a digital "I voted" sticker from a number of counties or from the state of Oregon, but posting that to social media doesn't quite hit the same.

The bottom line: Whatever envy you may have of states with a physical sticker is easily outweighed by the convenience of filling out a ballot at home.

If you need a dose of fall before the rains come this weekend, head over to the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden in Southeast Portland.

• The Rhodies are quiet this time of year, but the trees are at full volume with autumnal splendor.

If you go: The garden (5801 SE 28th Ave.) is open Thursday through Tuesday from 10am to 5:30pm.

🎤 Meira is rewatching Cardi B's "Tiny Desk" performance. It's that good.

🤯 Kale is still trying to wrap his head around "You can see everything."

This newsletter was edited by Geoff Ziezulewicz.