# Large Language Models in Politics and Democracy: A Comprehensive Survey

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.04498 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.04498/

## Key facts

- Cited by 5 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 33 of its 49 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 1 Dec 2024.

## Builds on (most cited first, 30 of 33)

- [Training language models to follow instructions with human feedback](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2203.02155/) (2022)
- [LLaMA: Open and Efficient Foundation Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2302.13971/) (2023)
- [On the Opportunities and Risks of Foundation Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.07258/) (2021)
- [Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.05782/) (2023)
- [A Comprehensive Overview of Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.06435/) (2023)
- [Towards Measuring the Representation of Subjective Global Opinions in Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.16388/) (2023)
- [Social Simulacra: Creating Populated Prototypes for Social Computing Systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2208.04024/) (2022)
- [War and Peace (WarAgent): Large Language Model-based Multi-Agent Simulation of World Wars](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.17227/) (2023)
- [Cooperate or Collapse: Emergence of Sustainable Cooperation in a Society of LLM Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.16698/) (2024)
- [Collective Constitutional AI: Aligning a Language Model with Public Input](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.07814/) (2024)
- [LawBench: Benchmarking Legal Knowledge of Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.16289/) (2023)
- [Humanoid Agents: Platform for Simulating Human-like Generative Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.05418/) (2023)
- [Escalation Risks from Language Models in Military and Diplomatic Decision-Making](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.03408/) (2024)
- [(A)I Am Not a Lawyer, But...: Engaging Legal Experts towards Responsible LLM Policies for Legal Advice](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.01864/) (2024)
- [SaulLM-54B & SaulLM-141B: Scaling Up Domain Adaptation for the Legal Domain](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.19584/) (2024)
- [ElectionSim: Massive Population Election Simulation Powered by Large Language Model Driven Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.20746/) (2024)
- [A Comprehensive Evaluation of Large Language Models on Legal Judgment Prediction](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.11761/) (2023)
- [Simulating Public Administration Crisis: A Novel Generative Agent-Based Simulation System to Lower Technology Barriers in Social Science Research](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.06957/) (2023)
- [BattleAgent: Multi-modal Dynamic Emulation on Historical Battles to Complement Historical Analysis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.15532/) (2024)
- [On Large Language Models in National Security Applications](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.03453/) (2024)
- [Plurals: A System for Guiding LLMs Via Simulated Social Ensembles](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.17213/) (2024)
- [Demonstrations of the Potential of AI-based Political Issue Polling](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.04781/) (2023)
- [Large Language Models as Corporate Lobbyists](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.01181/) (2023)
- [Positioning Political Texts with Large Language Models by Asking and Averaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.16639/) (2023)
- [Generative Echo Chamber? Effects of LLM-Powered Search Systems on Diverse Information Seeking](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.05880/) (2024)
- [Social-LLM: Modeling User Behavior at Scale using Language Models and Social Network Data](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.00893/) (2023)
- [Representation Bias in Political Sample Simulations with Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.11409/) (2024)
- [From Voices to Validity: Leveraging Large Language Models (LLMs) for Textual Analysis of Policy Stakeholder Interviews](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.01202/) (2023)
- [PolicyCraft: Supporting Collaborative and Participatory Policy Design through Case-Grounded Deliberation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.15644/) (2024)
- [Policy Prototyping for LLMs: Pluralistic Alignment via Interactive and Collaborative Policymaking](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.08622/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 5 of 5)

- [A Game-Theoretic Negotiation Framework for Cross-Cultural Consensus in LLMs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.13245/) (2025)
- [Open-source LLMs administer maximum electric shocks in a Milgram-like obedience experiment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.21401/) (2026)
- [BioBlue: Systematic runaway-optimiser-like LLM failure modes on biologically and economically aligned AI safety benchmarks for LLMs with simplified observation format](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.02655/) (2025)
- [The GDN-CC Dataset: Automatic Corpus Clarification for AI-enhanced Democratic Citizen Consultations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.14944/) (2026)
- [Poli-Bias: Understanding and Measuring Large Language Model Biases in International Political Conflicts](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.06123/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

The advancement of generative AI, particularly large language models (LLMs), has a significant impact on politics and democracy, offering potential across various domains, including policymaking, political communication, analysis, and governance. This paper surveys the recent and potential applications of LLMs in politics, examining both their promises and the associated challenges. This paper examines the ways in which LLMs are being employed in legislative processes, political communication, and political analysis. Moreover, we investigate the potential of LLMs in diplomatic and national security contexts, economic and social modeling, and legal applications. While LLMs offer opportunities to enhance efficiency, inclusivity, and decision-making in political processes, they also present challenges related to bias, transparency, and accountability. The paper underscores the necessity for responsible development, ethical considerations, and governance frameworks to ensure that the integration of LLMs into politics aligns with democratic values and promotes a more just and equitable society.