Congressman Brad Finstad is running a TV ad with a fake photo of Jake Johnson

A new ad from Brad Finstad includes “what appeared to be an AI-generated” fake image of Jake Johnson that was manipulated to remove a veteran and small business owner, who previously received terrible constituent services from Finstad. The doctored photo replaces Beth Benike – a 10-year U.S. Army veteran and the 2025 Minnesota Small Business Owner of the Year – with Tim Walz. Now, the Finstad campaign is blasting this image out on the airwaves, despite being fabricated.

“My own congressman wouldn’t even talk to me in my time of deepest need that he was directly impacting and continuing to make worse, and now he’s using a photo taken at my warehouse and took me out of it?,” said Beth Benike in a comment to HuffPost. “Can you make someone feel any less significant?”

“Brad Finstad is fabricating fake photos because he can’t defend his record,” said Nik Marda, spokesperson for Jake Johnson. “He’s trying to trick people, but the voters of southern Minnesota won’t be distracted from Finstad’s votes to raise prices, continue the Iran War, and give tax breaks to data center companies.”

Finstad’s campaign did not deny that the photo was altered. Instead, his spokesperson in a statement to KSTP said that his campaign has “not violated any laws.” Minnesota state law bans the use of deepfakes to influence an election, and that law covers any photograph or electronic image “so realistic that a reasonable person would believe it depicts speech or conduct of an individual who did not in fact engage in such speech or conduct.”

This is part of a broader pattern of conduct. Finstad’s first TV ad falsely claimed Jake would raise taxes on tips, overtime, and Social Security. Jake supports ending taxes on all three. When the next Finstad ad drops, feel free to reference this press release: Jake does not support taxpayer-funded healthcare for people who are in the United States illegally, and Jake supports full funding for our police departments, Veterans’ programs, Social Security, and Medicare.

Read the key takeaways:

KSTP: Questions raised about possible ‘deepfake’ image in First District TV ad

“The photo in question looks like Johnson and Walz are standing next to each other while Johnson gives the ‘thumbs up’ sign. However, the original image featured Johnson standing with a small business owner. She is replaced with a picture of Walz.”
“‘The Johnson campaign at least has a right to have a complaint about it,’ says Sen. Erin Maye Quade, DFL-Apple Valley.”
“Her legislation bans ‘deepfake’ images defined as ‘any video recording, motion-picture film, sound recording, electronic image, or photograph, or any technological representation of speech or conduct substantially derivative thereof; that is so realistic that a reasonable person would believe it depicts speech or conduct of an individual who did not in fact engage in such speech or conduct…’”

ABC 6 News: Campaign ad raises questions about AI

“This ad from Republican First District Congressman Brad Finstad uses an altered image of his opponent, Democrat Jake Johnson, and Governor Tim Walz. This image of Johnson giving Walz a thumbs up never happened. It’s a combination of one half of a photo of Johnson with a local business owner, but the business owner’s image is replaced by a picture of Walz.”
“State law says a deepfake can be any video or photograph that is so realistic a reasonable person would believe the speech or conduct happened. In this case, Johnson giving Walz the thumbs up in a photo while standing next to him.”

HuffPost: GOP Rep. Brad Finstad Runs Attack Ad That Erases Critical Voter From Photo

“Minnesota small business owner Beth Benike was watching the Netflix show “Bridgerton” on Monday night when she noticed a familiar image in a political ad that aired during a commercial break: the exact shot of Democratic congressional nominee Jake Johnson from a photo she’d been in with him last year.”
“Except in this attack ad from Johnson’s opponent, Republican Rep. Brad Finstad, Benike wasn’t in the photo anymore. In her place, in what appeared to be an AI-generated image, was Democratic Gov. Tim Walz.”
“After being named Minnesota’s Small Business Person of the Year in March 2025, Benike was making news days later talking about struggling because of Trump’s tariffs. She reached out to Finstad several times for help, but said he didn’t offer any. When she twice tried to meet with him in Washington, D.C., he declined. She met Johnson in April, when he heard her story and asked if he could come to her warehouse to learn more about tariffs.”
“That’s where they ended up in a photo together, and why Benike quickly recognized Johnson’s image in Finstad’s campaign ad. She said she remembers that day “really clearly,” including what Johnson was wearing and where they were standing in her warehouse.”
“I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me,’” Benike told HuffPost, with a weak laugh. “My own congressman wouldn’t even talk to me in my time of deepest need that he was directly impacting and continuing to make worse, and now he’s using a photo taken at my warehouse and took me out of it? Can you make someone feel any less significant?”
“What a poor decision,” said Benike. “You’d better believe I’m going to be sharing this with the people that have been following my story.... It almost feels like an attack, like ’we’ll show how insignificant she is.”
“Finstad’s campaign did not respond to requests for comment.”

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