An unexpected twist emerged in the Virginia lieutenant governor’s race on Tuesday when the Republican contender staged a 40-minute debate featuring an AI representation of his Democratic opponent.
After State Sen. Ghazala Hashmi declined multiple invitations to debate, Republican John Reid orchestrated an event against a simulated version of Hashmi. This AI stand-in responded to questions with a mechanical voice that imitated the state senator.
“It’s a shame that a sitting State Senator is either too intimidated by her own record or too strategic to engage directly with voters,” Reid remarked in a statement clarifying the rationale behind the unconventional “debate.”
He further asserted, “I am committed to standing firmly and answering questions from both the media and the public in an unscripted setting. That is what true leadership entails.”
Entitled “The Debate That Should Have Happened,” the event showcased Reid at the podium addressing queries, with a static image of Hashmi appearing onscreen for the AI’s responses.
Spanning approximately 40 minutes, the debate tackled topics such as minimum wage, electric vehicles, and the candidates’ educational policies.
Rather than allow the bot to come up with the answers, it was Reid’s team who put together its responses based on Hashmi’s previous public statements on the debate questions, Noah Jennings, Reid’s campaign manager, told The Post.
“We wanted it to be as fair to her as possible and not have this come off as a comedic stunt,” Jennings said, explaining that AI was only used to mimic Hashmi’s voice.
Jennings added that the team came up with the idea after Hashmi refused a proposal to hold 10 debates across Virginia to appeal their position to voters.
Hashmi campaign spokesperson Ava Pitruzzello slammed the one-way debate as a desperate gimmick for Reid, whose campaign has been rocky after his own party and Gov. Glenn Youngkin called on him to quit following accusations that he posted gay porn on social media. Reid has denied the allegations.
“John Reid’s failed use of deepfakes is a desperate move straight out of Donald Trump’s playbook,” Pitruzzello told the Washington Post, referencing the president’s tendency to use AI images on Truth Social.
“While we appreciate that AI Ghazala did share her vision like her commitment to public education and reproductive rights — it’s pretty clear, Reid only cares about shoddy gimmicks and not governing,” she added.
“Maybe he should focus on voters instead of videos. And hasn’t he gotten in enough trouble online already?” Pitzruzzello concluded, taking a jab at the controversy around Reid.
The lieutenant governor is a mostly ceremonial role in Virginia, with one of the position’s few roles being to break ties in the state Senate.
There have been no forums or formal debates for the position, something the held true for the 2021 campaign season.
Recent polls show Reid and Hashmi are neck-and-neck, with the latest Washington Post-Schar School survey putting the Democrat at only 4-percentage points ahead of Reid, well within the margin of error.
