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A Broward County School Board candidate is accusing a political committee backing her opponent of using undisclosed artificial intelligence in campaign texts, a violation of Florida law if proven true. Jessie Bastos filed two election complaints late last month against Voters for Better Government, a county-level political committee registered in Palm Beach, and the committee's Chair, Scott Streibig, alleging unlawful AI-assisted attacks and improper registration. She is also asking state prosecutors to investigate possible crimes. Bastos, who is running against incumbent School Board Member Adam Cervera for the panel's District 6 seat, submitted the complaints to the Florida Elections Commission on July 23. On July 25, her lawyer, Jason Blank, sent similar letters to Palm Beach State Attorney Alexcia Cox, Broward State Attorney Harold Pryor, and Statewide Prosecutor Brad McVay, asking them to investigate Streibig and his committee for knowingly violating the state's Election Code.

AI disclosure requirements

The complaints concern at least four mass texts attributed to Voters for Better Government that Bastos says were sent to thousands of Broward voters. They contained images she contends were altered with generative AI to depict her making facial expressions or holding documents in ways that did not occur. Florida law requires qualifying political communications featuring such imagery to state: "Created in whole or in part with the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)." Failure to include the disclosure is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. The texts in question said they were paid for by Voters for Better Government, but none included the required AI language. At least one text and a website the committee funded - which does carry an AI disclaimer - accused Bastos of being "under investigation" by the Florida Elections Commission and Commission on Ethics. Bastos was the subject of at least one Commission on Ethics complaint, but the panel dismissed it July 24. Another text explicitly told recipients to "Stand with Adam Cervera." Bastos argues the presence of the AI disclaimer on the website proves the committee knew AI disclosures are required but omitted them from the texts. The complaints include screenshots of the texts and side-by-side comparisons of original photos and the altered attack images, which show Bastos holding complaint forms, receiving a failing "report card," and appearing with changed facial expressions.

Registration and jurisdiction questions

Bastos also accuses Streibig of improperly operating Voters for Better Government outside its registered jurisdiction. The committee has been registered since 2020 with the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections, but it's spending money to influence a Broward election. While state law does not categorically prohibit a committee registered in one county from spending in another, committees operating across county lines generally must register at the state level with the Florida Division of Elections and report changes in jurisdiction within 10 days. Failure to do so can carry a civil fine of up to $2,500 per count. Bastos says database searches her team conducted found no such registration. The complaints ask that Streibig and Voters for Better Government be held liable but request no specific fine or monetary damages. The prosecutorial referrals seek criminal investigations over both the AI disclaimer violations and the committee's registration. Blank's letter to McVay asks for expedited action because of the approaching election.

Counter-allegations

Outside the complaints, Bastos's team raised an issue this week with a text funded by Cervera's Broward-registered committee, Students and Parents First, which included excerpts from a South Florida Sun-Sentinel article endorsing him. Cervera is not named as a respondent in Bastos's complaints, but her campaign said its analysis confirmed the image of Bastos used in that text was also created using AI. Cervera called that "patently false." "There's no AI in the picture," he said. "My campaign team that helps me put together all our campaign-approved messaging follows all statutory regulations and election laws." He also denied any collaboration with Voters for Better Government. Cervera then turned the AI focus on Bastos, sharing a text paid for by Making Democracy Work, a committee chaired by Bastos's campaign consultant, Michael Worley, with Blank as treasurer. The image shows Cervera with an unflattering expression, covered in a black-and-white filter, alongside former President Joe Biden. Cervera said AI was used to make him look "old and haggard." Worley responded by sending a screenshot of the original Cervera photo used in the ad. "That is a simple posterizing filter on Photoshop," he said by text, adding that Cervera would need to provide the pre-edited photo his committee used to prove it wasn't altered with AI. "He will have to show the FEC … anyway." The dispute comes amid broader scrutiny of AI use in political communications, a topic covered in AI for Government training resources. For officials and candidates navigating these rules, understanding disclosure requirements is becoming a compliance issue, not just a technical one. AI Learning Path for Policy Makers offers guidance on the legal frameworks emerging around synthetic media. Cervera faces four challengers in the Aug. 18 nonpartisan primary: Bastos, Army veteran and educator Roberto Fernandez III, substitute teacher Makai Henry, and aftercare entrepreneur Lester Wilks. All four challengers are Democrats; Cervera is a Republican. Because School Board elections are nonpartisan, all candidates will appear on the same ballot. A candidate must clear 50% of the vote to win outright; otherwise, the top two finishers advance to a Nov. 3 runoff.

Why this matters for government professionals

This case shows that AI disclosure rules are being actively enforced at the local level, with criminal penalties attached. Public officials, campaign staff, and political committees need to verify that any AI-generated or AI-altered imagery in their communications carries the required disclaimer - and that their committee registrations are current for every jurisdiction where they spend money. The cost of noncompliance can include jail time, fines, and criminal investigation, on top of the political damage.