An Oklahoma representative confirmed this week that his resignation as chair of the state's Democratic Party came after he used artificial intelligence to generate a clip of him kissing a potential candidate for office, nonprofit news outlet NonDoc reports.
Rep. John Waldron, D-Tulsa, stepped down from the position in December, after six months on the job. At the time, he said he left due to "personal reasons."
NonDoc reports that the resignation came two months after he met with a woman considering a run for office. Waldron then used AI to create a video of the two of them kissing from their photos. He then sent the video to the woman, though he said he did not intend to.
Waldron told NonDoc that the video was a "mistake" made under stress and that he has since "accepted all consequences" for the action. He also said that there was "more to the story," which "may not play out yet for a few more weeks" and is connected to an episode last year in which fake audio was distributed of Waldron allegedly making racially insensitive remarks about former party chair Alicia Andrews.
"There was a complaint, and on that basis, I withdrew from the Oklahoma Democratic Party (chairmanship). There was a request for confidentiality, which I have respected," Waldron told NonDoc. "There's more to the story, and it has to do with larger political forces."
Waldron has filed for re-election this year, although House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City, told NonDoc that the party would not be supporting him. He faces a primary challenger in Kristina Gabriel, a public health worker.
Waldron's office did not respond to a phone call asking for additional comment. The identity of the woman in the video has not been made public.