'Beautiful Politician' Who Claimed Sexual Assault and Childbirth Was Actually AI Account, Shocking Japanese Political Party

A Fictional Life of Sexual Assault, Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Childcare
The Real Operator Was a Male Member of the Constitutional Democratic Party

A Japanese male political party member has become embroiled in controversy after creating a virtual woman using artificial intelligence (AI) and presenting her as a real politician on social networking services (SNS) to engage in political activities. The shock stems from the fact that he not only used AI to generate her facial features, but also invented an entirely fictitious life story, including experiences of sexual violence, pregnancy, childbirth, and family relationships. Concerns are mounting that 'fake personas' created with generative AI could be exploited for political purposes or manipulation of public opinion, especially because, recently in the United States, a virtual female U.S. military member gained over 1 million followers on social media by promoting political messages.

Female politician Riho Nakamura's social media account. The account is currently suspended. Social Media

On August 25, Yonhap News, citing Japan's ANN News, reported that a woman operating an account under the name 'Nakamura Riho@Constitutional Democratic Party' on social media was in fact not a real person, sparking debate in Japan. This account frequently shared images of the user campaigning on the streets or carrying a child, but all of these were generated with AI. Furthermore, the account profile stated, "I aim to create a society where women can live in safety, drawing on my experiences of pregnancy and childbirth resulting from sexual violence."

A 'Fake Life' on Social Media: From Sexual Violence Victim to Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Childrearing

It wasn’t just the photographs that were generated by AI. A detailed backstory was created for 'Nakamura Riho,' including her past, family, and childbirth experiences. One post claimed, "At 2:30 a.m. on May 2nd, I gave birth to a 3,620-gram baby girl." She also hinted at a future political ambition: "Two years from now, I will run in the constituency where my father, a sitting cabinet minister, once narrowed the vote gap to just 39 votes." Thus, a completely non-existent woman was given a fabricated history, family background, and political context.

The social media profile description of female politician Riho Nakamura. Currently, the account is suspended. SNS

According to ANN News, the person who operated the account was a male member of the Constitutional Democratic Party in Tochigi Prefecture. He admitted to reporters, "I created it using AI. It was careless of me. I regret it." When asked why he chose to operate as a virtual woman, he explained, "As a man, I am not popular, so I wanted to become popular by presenting as a woman." The Constitutional Democratic Party responded immediately. Masayo Tanabu, secretary general of the Constitutional Democratic Party, stated, "I received a report from the party’s publicity officer," and indicated that the party would review what political or ethical problems the use of AI may raise and respond accordingly.

In a separate statement, the party emphasized, "Posting content using a fictional character created with generative AI under the actual party’s name spreads false information and could distort democracy, so it should never happen." The party, through its Tochigi branch, requested the individual to stop using the party name and to no longer post false information using AI-generated images. Currently, the relevant X (formerly Twitter) account has been suspended.

Even the 'U.S. Military Woman' Trusted by 1 Million Was AI

This is not the first time a woman created through AI has attracted a massive social media following while posing as a real political or social figure. In the United States, around March, a blonde U.S. military woman named 'Jessica Foster' became a sensation. Her social media featured posts showing her dressed in a U.S. military uniform in front of an F-22 Raptor jet or traveling with U.S. President Donald Trump. She posted active political content supporting President Trump with slogans like "America First."

Jessica Foster, who caused controversy over AI. SNS

Followers believed that she was genuinely serving in the military, leaving comments such as "Thank you for your service." The account surpassed 1 million followers within about four months of launching. However, 'Jessica Foster' did not exist in real life. The Washington Post reported that there was no record of Foster in military service databases and that traces of AI image generation were found throughout the account’s photos.

AI-specific errors were also identified, such as the uniform’s nametag displaying 'Jessica'—her first name—instead of the surname 'Foster,' which is against U.S. military convention, and referring to the 'Board of Peace' attended by President Trump as 'Border of Peace.' The account reportedly monetized its audience, attracted through political messaging, by directing users to a paid adult content platform. Following the controversy, Meta deleted the related Instagram account.

Japan Mandates 'AI Label' for AI-Generated Election Content

Meanwhile, the range of 'AI-generated women' is expanding, from securing political support to manipulating war-related public opinion and even engaging in romantic or financial scams. The latest incident in Japan is particularly significant since it occurred as regulations on AI-generated political content are being strengthened. The Japanese parliament passed amendments to the Public Offices Election Act and related laws on July 13.

Under these amendments, when images or videos are posted online for election campaigning purposes, and if they are generated or manipulated by generative AI such that viewers might mistake them for real footage, it will be mandatory to clearly indicate that AI was used. The new regulations are scheduled to take effect from March 2027.

As AI technology advances, it has become possible to endow fictional people not only with appearances, but also with names, occupations, families, personal histories, and political beliefs. There are growing concerns that if social media users accept these personas as real people and internalize their political messages, the impact could go far beyond 'fake pictures'—potentially distorting the entire process of public opinion formation.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.