Orodata, a Nigerian data and civic technology organisation, has warned that artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to create misleading impressions of public support for political positions ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections.
The organisation raised the concern in a report titled “Manufactured Grassroots: Lessons for Civil Society from a Reported AI Influence Attempt in Kenya,” officially released to the media on Tuesday in Lagos.
The report draws on a September 2026 threat intelligence assessment by Anthropic, which documented an alleged influence operation in Kenya involving the use of AI to generate social media posts designed to appear as spontaneous expressions of grassroots political opinion.
According to the report, a pro-government operator used AI to produce political messages ahead of Kenya’s 2027 general election, including posts praising a government official over a proposed electricity tariff increase and narratives suggesting divisions among opposition politicians.
The messages were reportedly generated in batches to make coordinated political communication appear to represent the independent opinions of ordinary citizens.
Anthropic said it identified and disrupted the activity, adding that the campaign remained largely confined to a network of inauthentic accounts and attracted no significant engagement beyond that network.
The company also reported that it found no evidence of government involvement in the operation.
Orodata said the Kenyan experience offered important lessons for Nigeria, where political communication increasingly takes place on digital platforms ahead of the 2027 general elections.
It noted that AI-assisted political messaging could make it more difficult for citizens, journalists and civil society organisations to distinguish genuine public participation from coordinated efforts to create a false impression of widespread support.
The organisation stressed the need for civil society groups and other stakeholders to scrutinise online political campaigns and assess whether widely circulated messages genuinely reflect citizens’ views.
However, the report also cautioned against confusing legitimate political expression with coordinated manipulation, highlighting the need to protect citizens’ freedom to express political opinions.
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It said the challenge for civil society organisations, journalists and other stakeholders was to identify potentially misleading digital activities without undermining democratic participation or restricting legitimate political debate.
The report concluded that the Kenyan case provided a relevant reference point for Nigeria as stakeholders consider the implications of AI-generated political communication for public debate, electoral processes and democratic accountability ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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