The 2026 FactCheck Awards

As fact-checkers, we ticker a batch of ads successful the lead-up to elections, and we lone constitute astir a fraction of them. Some of them are downright bizarre. As we archetypal started doing 20 years agone — conscionable for amusive — connected Election Day, we’re giving retired unreal awards to immoderate of the notable ads we came crossed this run cycle.

Our superior absorption is nationalist politics, but a fig of this year’s winners are from the authorities and section level. You whitethorn announcement that 1 victor has thing successful communal with manager Martin Scorsese, and different honoree is featured holding thing conscionable arsenic furry. There’s besides an grant recognizing the contributions of AI due to the fact that we privation to get connected its bully side.

Read our awards communicative and spell to the polls and vote. The bid successful which you bash them is little important.

Toughest connected China

Winner: Sen. Marsha Blackburn, campaigner for Tennessee governor

This advertisement shows Blackburn, a Republican, has a strategy for cracking down connected China that different politicians astir apt person not considered. It involves going to a Chinese edifice and smashing each of its luck cookies. (In 2024, she broke a batch of china, arsenic successful plates.)

“Here successful Tennessee, we’re going to halt communist China and support Tennessee land,” she says, appearing satisfied with her show of destruction. If lone negotiating with Chinese President Xi Jinping were that simple. 

It was considerate of Blackburn not to harm the restaurant’s maneki-neko figurine successful the making of the ad. That indispensable beryllium due to the fact that of its Japanese origin.

Cutest Pasta

Winner: Wisconsin authorities Rep. Steve Doyle

Doyle’s look for an effectual advertisement was a dash of wit and a sprinkle of manipulation. The Democratic assemblyman moving for reelection successful Wisconsin did the aforesaid benignant of affectional entreaty that helium warned voters astir successful the ad.

“Have you noticed however politicians prey connected emotions to power voters?” helium asks, adding that they’ll usage “pictures of babies” oregon “scare tactics” conscionable to get votes. Don’t autumn for it, helium says, each portion holding a babe of his ain – an adorable alpaca named Pasta. 

Because of that distraction, we’d recognize if viewers missed everything Doyle aboriginal said astir wanting to little taxes, marque healthcare affordable and reign successful large tech.

And get this: Pasta has an alpaca sister named Noodle. Put those 2 successful an advertisement unneurotic and Doyle truly won’t beryllium warring fair.

The John Stockton Award for Assists

Winner: AI

Ever had a impermanent who conscionable won’t leave? Yeah…Ohio knows the feeling. 🎂 https://t.co/bWbnwQX7Hr

— Ohio Flyer PAC (@OhioFlyerPAC) April 20, 2026

A fig of analysts have dubbed the 2026 midterms the archetypal “AI election.” That’s due to the fact that truthful galore ads this rhythm person been made with the assistance of artificial intelligence.

The Wesleyan Media Project said $137 cardinal was spent connected 220 ads featuring AI-generated oregon enhanced contented done Oct. 11. That’s up from virtually thing successful 2024, and inactive likely an “undercount,” it has said. Republicans, much truthful than Democrats, person utilized the exertion erstwhile producing ads, the project’s investigation has found.

In the Republican advertisement above, an AI mentation of Democrat Sherrod Brown overstays his invited astatine a day party. Other notable AI-assisted ads showed Democrat James Talarico penning his ain mentation of the Bible (we fact-checked it), and Republican Rep. Thomas Massie successful a “throuple” with Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar. And immoderate AI ads person prompted cease-and-desist letters from the targeted candidates, specified arsenic one successful North Carolina that enactment Jessica Bichler, a authorities Senate candidate, successful brainsick yoga positions.

Wesleyan said astir of the ads don’t adjacent notation being made with AI, leaving viewers to fig it out. We’re definite that’s due to the fact that AI is simply a large teammate and didn’t privation credit.

The Best Worst Facial Hair

Winner: Charly Ray, campaigner for authorities Senate successful Wisconsin

Typically, astatine slightest immoderate governmental candidates athletics antithetic beards oregon mustaches. But this twelvemonth — astatine slightest successful Wisconsin — it’s each astir the eyebrows.

Democrat Charly Ray, who’s moving for authorities Senate, enactment retired an advertisement embracing elector absorption to his large, unruly brows, portion taking the accidental to usage them arsenic argumentation metaphors and to mildly rib different person successful the state.

“Like information centers, they’ve had precise small oversight,” Ray says of his brows successful an awesome deadpan. “Like our schools, attraction has been underfunded.”

He boasts that his eyebrows are “all-natural,” dissimilar those of “some politicians,” arsenic the advertisement flashes a photograph of Republican U.S. House campaigner Michael Alfonso, who is the son-in-law of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Alfonso’s well-coiffed brows have drawn comparisons to Bert the Muppet, truthful he’s received immoderate teasing arsenic well.

Ray, who says determination volition beryllium nary trimming connected his part, is not the lone person to capitalize connected their brows this year. In the Canadian metropolis of Burlington, Ontario, a pistillate mayoral campaigner voluntarily drew connected a unibrow (as good arsenic a mustache) à la motion graffiti to cheekily poke amusive astatine herself successful an advertisement to get retired the vote. (Alas, she lost her race.)

Worst Romance Plotline

Winner: Steve Hilton, campaigner for California governor

Steve Hilton, the Republican moving for politician successful California, caused a disturbance with this ad. It shows 2 young women sitting connected a furniture successful a darkened room, euphony playing, a ample Pride emblem connected the partition down them. 

“I can’t judge I’m doing this,” 1 says.

“Don’t beryllium nervous,” the different says, stroking her hair. “It’s not that bad.”

“I’ve conscionable ne'er done thing similar this before. Like what if my dada finds out?” 

Eventually, the camera pans down and we spot what they’re talking about: filling retired a ballot for a Republican, namely Hilton.

“I deliberation I similar it?” the archetypal pistillate says, giggling.  

“Now lick it,” the different says — and holds retired an envelope for a mail-in ballot. 

The ad’s last framework tells voters: “Just effort it! Steve Hilton for Governor.” 

The suggestive advertisement prompted pushback from galore successful Hilton’s ain party, including a authorities superintendent campaigner who called it “Weird, creepy, disturbing garbage.” Hilton defended the advertisement but asked “for immoderate grace,” saying the thought that helium had upset anyone saddened him.

Barn Dancing with the Stars

Winner: Jamie Ager, campaigner for U.S. House successful North Carolina

Campaign ads often amusement candidates pledging to bring alteration to Washington. Jamie Ager’s medicine for alteration successful this advertisement is simply a spot different.

“Do you cognize what we request much of successful Washington, D.C.?” Ager, a Democrat moving for Congress successful occidental North Carolina, tells a assemblage arsenic euphony starts up. “Barn Dances!”

The adjacent shots amusement radical young and aged dancing to a unrecorded band, successful an airy barn with lights strung from the rafters. Ager is seen mixing it up with the different dancers.

“Amy and I big these each month,” Ager continues. “Politicians conscionable creation with the lobbyists. But I’ll instrumentality a bully upland hoedown immoderate day.” 

Then helium dances astir to his talking points: investing successful occidental North Carolina, taking connected firm greed and securing funds for the ongoing betterment from 2024’s Hurricane Helene.

Worst Sense of Direction

Winner: Defending Main Street PAC

This ace PAC advertisement is beauteous straightforward yet inactive went successful the wholly incorrect direction. It attacks Democrat Troy Jackson, who would correspond Portland and different parts of Maine if helium defeats Republican Sen. Susan Collins. But the advertisement ended up briefly airing successful Portland, Oregon, which is connected the different broadside of the country.

The geographic mix-up really wasn’t Defending Main Street PAC’s fault. It blamed the mistake connected its advertizing vendor, Cross Screen Media, which took responsibility.

“During a caller autarkic expenditure, our media vendor mistakenly placed astir $25,000 successful integer advertizing successful the Portland, Oregon media marketplace alternatively of Portland, Maine,” a typical for the ace PAC said successful a connection emailed to us. Nevermind that they ignored our questions astir the misleading claims successful the ad, arsenic we wrote.

The ace PAC yet got a refund, but this could person been an adjacent costlier mistake. There are multiple Portlands successful the U.S., including successful Texas, Connecticut and Tennessee.

The Eye Spy Award

Winner: BJ Wyrick, campaigner for politician of Little Rock, Arkansas

What the Flock? This advertisement from the mayoral contention successful Arkansas wasn’t connected our radar until we went searching for award-worthy ads we whitethorn person missed. Maybe we shouldn’t have.

As acold arsenic we know, the advertisement was lone posted to Facebook. It warns Little Rock residents – successful a Rockwell-inspired opus – that the metropolis is “watching you” and “everything you do” with thousands of cameras. After a contention involving section constabulary officers, Wyrick, the nonpartisan vice politician who wants the city’s caput job, spoke out against instrumentality enforcement utilizing Flock camera systems, which seizure conveyance enactment and tin beryllium adjuvant successful constabulary investigations. We presume that’s the constituent of the ad’s lyrics, but it isn’t precisely clear.

What’s truly creepy is the illustration for the ad, which features a batch of glossy eyeballs of antithetic sizes. Who wouldn’t fearfulness being watched aft seeing thing similar that?

The True Blood Award for Glamouring

Winner: President Donald Trump

The U.S. Government is up connected TV with this spot —

It aired nationally connected FOX yesterday during Illinois astatine #7 Ohio State and besides during Fox News Sunday this greeting https://t.co/8PP9FPzUZk

— Medium Buying (@MediumBuying) September 27, 2026

The vampires connected the TV bid “True Blood” utilized nonstop oculus contact, oregon glamouring, to hypnotize radical and power their thoughts. Here, Trump appeared to effort the aforesaid technique.

In the video, which is successful achromatic and achromatic for maximum effect, Trump does a exemplary locomotion down a hallway portion staring intensely into the camera for astir 30 seconds. As helium does that, a voiceover plays with Trump saying “we volition demolish the heavy state,” “expel the warmongers from our government,” “drive retired the globalists,” and “cast retired the communists, Marxists and fascists.” We’ll person to hold to spot if Trump’s method worked.

The White House experimented with immoderate intelligence tricks, too, erstwhile it tried to person critics of the taxpayer-funded connection that it’s a nationalist work announcement alternatively than a run ad. That was pugnacious to bash since Trump kept telling voters to unreal helium is connected the ballot, and released an astir identical advertisement during his 2024 tally for president.

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Editor’s note: FactCheck.org does not judge advertising. We trust connected grants and idiosyncratic donations from radical similar you. Please see a donation. Credit paper donations whitethorn beryllium made through our “Donate” page. If you similar to springiness by check, nonstop to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, P.O. Box 58100, Philadelphia, PA 19102. 

The station The 2026 FactCheck Awards appeared archetypal connected FactCheck.org.