What happened
On 10 November 2026 the European Commission opened a targeted consultation on draft revised election guidelines under the Digital Services Act (Article 35), closing 23 November 2026. The draft sets binding-direction expectations for Very Large Online Platforms and Search Engines (VLOPs/VLOSEs) on AI-era electoral risks: stronger defences against foreign information manipulation and interference; recommender-system expectations to spot suspicious trends, test algorithms for manipulation before each national election and log recommender changes in the six months before a vote; clear deepfake labelling that persists when content is shared and fast takedown of illegal deepfakes of candidates; candidate-protection reporting channels; and post-election reporting to the Commission and national authorities within 30 days plus a public version.
Why it matters
This is the Commission's main vehicle for translating generative-AI and deepfake risks into concrete, enforceable obligations for major platforms ahead of the 2027 European election cycle. It gives regulators a new yardstick for whether platforms are mitigating synthetic-media and information-manipulation risk, mandates algorithmic/pre-election testing, and extends DSA systemic-risk duties into the AI content dimension with a very short 13-day comment window.
Action needed
Affected platforms and AI content providers should review the draft guidelines and submit comments by 23 November 2026; plan for deepfake labelling, pre-election recommender testing and 30-day post-election reporting obligations.