An artificial intelligence model has predicted the result of next week’s local election in the city.

Voters will go to the polls across Brighton and Hove next Thursday to elect 54 councillors for the next four years.

As residents decide who to back, we asked the AI model ChatGPT to provide a forecast of the result of the election in the city.

Based on “previous local election results and the current political climate”, ChatGPT predicted that Labour would be the largest party on the council, but would fall short of the 28 seats needed for an overall majority.


LOCAL ELECTIONS 2023:


According to the AI, the party will win 24 seats, a gain of eight from the current make-up of the council, but four seats short of an overall majority on Brighton and Hove City Council.

The Green Party would win 20 seats, according to the AI’s forecast - unchanged from their current number of councillors.

ChatGPT forecast that the Conservatives would see a drop in their number of councillors from 11 currently to just eight.

It also predicted that two independents will be elected to the city council.

Currently, the Greens are the largest party with 20 seats, followed by Labour with 16 seats and the Conservatives with 11 seats.

The Brighton and Hove Independents have one seat on the council, with six other independent councillors.

The Argus:

However, the projection by the AI came with a bit of a health warning.

“The outcome of the local elections can be influenced by many factors and it is impossible to predict with certainty the outcome of any future event,” it said.

For the first time in Brighton and Hove, residents will be required to show a form of photo ID when casting their ballot at a polling station on May 4.

Accepted forms of ID include a passport, a driving licence or provisional driving licence issued by the UK or an EU country, a Blue Badge, an Older Person’s Bus Pass, and a PASS card.

Polling stations are open next Thursday from 7am until 10pm, with the city’s votes counted and the election results announced the following day.