No election AI law1 AI call rule1 political AI law
Illinois has no law on AI or deepfakes in political ads as of October 2026 (the 2026 disclosure bills stalled), and political autodialed calls are exempt from the state autodialer act except a caller ID rule, but AI voice work still runs into Illinois' unauthorized digital replica law, BIPA voiceprint liability, and an all-party consent rule for recording calls.
Political ad AI law
No law
When it applies
No state rule
Required AI disclaimer
None required
Criminal penalty
No state rule
Candidate can sue
General law only
AI voice calls
1 state rule + TCPA
Political ads and deepfakes
Does Illinois regulate AI in political ads?
No. As of October 5, 2026, Illinois has no state law that specifically regulates artificial intelligence or deepfakes in political ads or election communications. Illinois has not enacted any law that regulates or requires disclosure of AI-generated or deepfake content in political ads or election communications. Several 2025 and 2026 bills (SB 150, SB 2996, HB 1860, HB 3303) would have required a clear AI disclosure on political ads, and the disclosure language was folded into a large election reform package at the end of the 2026 spring session, but that package never advanced. General election law (paid-for-by disclaimers, false statements, voter intimidation) and civil claims such as defamation and the Right of Publicity Act still apply to deceptive AI content.
No AI disclaimer is required by Illinois statute. Ads still need Illinois's standard paid-for-by disclosures, and a deepfake that defames a candidate or misleads voters about how to vote can still create liability under general law and federal rules. If your ad also runs in a neighboring state's media market, that state's AI law can apply.
Bills to watch
HB 1832 (104th GA), Senate Floor Amendment 3: End-of-session election omnibus vehicle that carried the AI political ad disclosure language. Senate Floor Amendment 3 filed 2026-05-30 and re-referred to Assignments 2026-06-01 under Rule 3-9(a); never adopted or passed. Public Citizen labels the deepfake provision 'integrated (May 2026)', but the official bill history shows no enactment.
SB 2996 (104th GA): Political advertisements generated in whole or substantially by AI must include a clear and conspicuous disclosure; civil penalties and injunctive relief. Introduced 2026-01-27 by Sen. Mary Edly-Allen; not passed. Its language was placed in an end-of-session election omnibus in May 2026 that never advanced. Technically alive until the 104th General Assembly ends in January 2027 (fall veto session possible).
SB 150 (104th GA): AI political advertising disclosure labels with civil penalties. Stalled; re-referred to Senate Assignments 2025-04-11
HB 1860 and HB 3303 (104th GA): House AI and deceptive media in elections bills. Not passed; listed by Public Citizen as folded into the May 2026 election omnibus, which did not advance
Standalone Edly-Allen bill (filed after the 2026 spring session): Disclosure for ads using AI within four months of an election: on-screen statement for graphics, 3-second spoken statement for audio, both for video; notice to State Board of Elections; fines per distribution. Filed after the omnibus stalled; not passed. Would not apply to the November 2026 election.
For campaigns and consultants
Before an AI ad runs in Illinois
No Illinois statute requires an AI label on political ads in 2026, but federal rules (FCC, FEC fraudulent misrepresentation) and platform and broadcaster policies still apply. Labeling AI content is still the safe practice.
Do not use a real person's voice or likeness (including an opponent's) in a digital replica without consent: the Right of Publicity Act now covers unauthorized digital replicas.
If you clone a voice for ads or calls, get written consent and a release: voiceprints are biometric identifiers under BIPA, which carries a private right of action.
Watch for the fall 2026 veto session and the 2027 session: the AI political ad disclosure language is likely to return.
AI voice calls and texts
Can a campaign use AI voice calls in Illinois?
Illinois has no AI-specific rule for voice calls or texts. The Automatic Telephone Dialers Act bans playing a prerecorded message by autodialer without the called party's consent and bans autodialed calls between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m., but calls on behalf of political organizations and polling are exempt from the Act except the rule that autodialers may not block caller ID. Separately, Illinois is an all-party consent state for recording private conversations, and voiceprints are biometric identifiers under BIPA (740 ILCS 14), which matters for AI voice agents or voice cloning that capture a real person's voice. Federal TCPA rules (the FCC treats AI-generated voices as artificial voices requiring prior consent for calls to cell phones) apply on top.
anytime; no autodialed calls between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m. (non-exempt calls)
Media covered
calls placed by an autodialer that connect to a recorded message
Who it covers
any person operating an autodialer in Illinois; calls by political, charitable, public opinion polling, research survey, or broadcast rating organizations are exempt except for the caller ID rule
Disclaimer format
Non-exempt calls: autodialer must disconnect within 30 seconds of hang-up, or use a live operator who states name, organization, address, phone, and purpose and asks for consent before playing the recording.
Exemptions
calls on behalf of political organizations
charitable organizations
public opinion polling and research surveys
calls in response to an express request
existing business relationship
Civil penalty
Treble actual damages plus costs and attorney fees, plus $500 statutory damages per violation; Attorney General enforcement under the Consumer Fraud Act
Who can sue
Yes, any customer harmed (815 ILCS 305/30)
Notes
Section 20(a) exempts political calls from the Act, but Section 20(b) still requires every autodialed call to comply with Section 15(d): an autodialer may not be operated in a way that blocks caller ID. No AI-specific provision. Statute text confirmed through a secondary mirror because ilga.gov was unreachable on 2026-10-05.
Federal floor everywhere: AI-generated voices are “artificial” voices under the TCPA (FCC, February 2024), so they need prior express consent to cell phones and must identify the caller at the start of the call. AI robocall laws in every state
Federal layer
Federal rules that apply in Illinois
At the federal level, the binding rules that hit AI in campaigns today are the TCPA and FCC robocall rules, not any AI-specific election law. Since February 2024 the FCC treats AI-generated voices as "artificial" voices, so AI voice calls to cell phones need prior express consent (political calls included), AI or prerecorded political calls to landlines are limited to three per 30 days without consent, and every such message must identify the caller, give a callback number and offer an opt-out. The FEC says its existing fraudulent misrepresentation ban covers AI, but it has had no quorum since April 2025 and cannot enforce. Proposed FCC rules on AI disclosure in broadcast political ads and in AI calls were never adopted, and no federal AI political ad disclaimer bill has passed. Federal efforts to preempt state AI laws (a 2025 moratorium the Senate struck 99 to 1, and Executive Order 14365) have not displaced any state election or robocall law as of October 2026.
Voter contact that clears Illinois's AI rules before the first dial.
Live professional callers and AI voice programs for voter ID, persuasion, ballot chase and GOTV, scripted to the disclosure and consent rules on this page, with every call graded and a real time dashboard.
No. As of October 5, 2026, Illinois has no state law that specifically regulates artificial intelligence or deepfakes in political ads or election communications. Illinois has not enacted any law that regulates or requires disclosure of AI-generated or deepfake content in political ads or election communications. Several 2025 and 2026 bills (SB 150, SB 2996, HB 1860, HB 3303) would have required a clear AI disclosure on political ads, and the disclosure language was folded into a large election reform package at the end of the 2026 spring session, but that package never advanced. General election law (paid-for-by disclaimers, false statements, voter intimidation) and civil claims such as defamation and the Right of Publicity Act still apply to deceptive AI content.
Can a campaign use an AI voice for robocalls in Illinois?
Illinois has no AI-specific rule for voice calls or texts. The Automatic Telephone Dialers Act bans playing a prerecorded message by autodialer without the called party's consent and bans autodialed calls between 9 p.m. and 9 a.m., but calls on behalf of political organizations and polling are exempt from the Act except the rule that autodialers may not block caller ID. Separately, Illinois is an all-party consent state for recording private conversations, and voiceprints are biometric identifiers under BIPA (740 ILCS 14), which matters for AI voice agents or voice cloning that capture a real person's voice. Federal TCPA rules (the FCC treats AI-generated voices as artificial voices requiring prior consent for calls to cell phones) apply on top. Under federal law, the FCC ruled in February 2024 that AI-generated voices are "artificial" voices under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, so prerecorded or AI voice calls to cell phones need prior express consent, and every such call must identify the caller at the start.
How many political AI laws does Illinois have?
This tracker counts 1 Illinois AI law touching politics and elections as of October 5, 2026: 1 on AI or artificial voice calls.
Are there pending AI election bills in Illinois?
HB 1832 (104th GA), Senate Floor Amendment 3 (End-of-session election omnibus vehicle that carried the AI political ad disclosure language): Senate Floor Amendment 3 filed 2026-05-30 and re-referred to Assignments 2026-06-01 under Rule 3-9(a); never adopted or passed. Public Citizen labels the deepfake provision 'integrated (May 2026)', but the official bill history shows no enactment. SB 2996 (104th GA) (Political advertisements generated in whole or substantially by AI must include a clear and conspicuous disclosure; civil penalties and injunctive relief): Introduced 2026-01-27 by Sen. Mary Edly-Allen; not passed. Its language was placed in an end-of-session election omnibus in May 2026 that never advanced. Technically alive until the 104th General Assembly ends in January 2027 (fall veto session possible). SB 150 (104th GA) (AI political advertising disclosure labels with civil penalties): Stalled; re-referred to Senate Assignments 2025-04-11. HB 1860 and HB 3303 (104th GA) (House AI and deceptive media in elections bills): Not passed; listed by Public Citizen as folded into the May 2026 election omnibus, which did not advance. Standalone Edly-Allen bill (filed after the 2026 spring session) (Disclosure for ads using AI within four months of an election: on-screen statement for graphics, 3-second spoken statement for audio, both for video; notice to State Board of Elections; fines per distribution): Filed after the omnibus stalled; not passed. Would not apply to the November 2026 election.