Gendered Based Political Violence in the Digital Age: The Impact of AI Driven Disinformation on Women’s Electoral Participation

Abstract

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence generated content has intensified the scale and sophistication of gendered political violence in digital spaces. AI driven disinformation, including deepfakes, synthetic imagery, and coordinated harassment campaigns, disproportionately targets women candidates, undermining their credibility, personal security, and political legitimacy. Despite increasing global concern, systematic empirical evidence on how such technologically mediated attacks influence women’s electoral participation remains limited. This study investigates the relationship between exposure to AI driven gendered disinformation and women’s political ambition, campaign engagement, and voter trust. Using a quantitative research design, survey data were analyzed through multivariate regression models to examine the effect of digital disinformation exposure on key political participation outcomes. Findings reveal that higher levels of exposure are significantly associated with reduced political efficacy, lower willingness to run for office, and diminished public perceptions of competence and trustworthiness. These results demonstrate that AI facilitated gendered attacks pose measurable risks to democratic inclusion and highlight the urgent need for regulatory oversight, platform accountability, and gender responsive digital governance to safeguard women’s equal political representation