Published August 13, 2026 at 1:50 PM EDT

The Republican candidate in New York’s 21st District Congressional campaign is coming under scrutiny for creating an AI video of his Democratic opponent.

Republican Anthony Constantino released a deepfake video depicting his challenger Blake Gendebien falsely supporting despicable policies.

“As Democrat I feel it’s my duty to proudly support rape, human trafficking and pedophilia.”

The video includes text stating: “This video has been manipulated. Blake Gendebien made an AI ad about Elise Stefanik. We made one for him.” Constantino derides criticism, claiming he used AI to put into Gendebien’s mouth the policies of the Democratic party.

“Everything in the video was an honest representation of what Blake Gendebien signed up to support.”

Gendebien calls the fabrication “vile” and posted the earlier and original video in which he calls for the release of the Epstein files.

“Pedophilia is never a hoax. Pedophilia is never okay. We have to protect the victims. We have to make sure that they are okay. Let’s get the names out now.”

The video features a mispronunciation of Elise Stefanik’s name, indicating it is a deepfake made with AI.