Swipe, like, vote: the organizers using dating apps to boost turnout

Krisiti Johnson, the national press secretary for NextGen, an organization working to increase youth voter turnout, has begun using a new method to contact potential voters: online dating apps. Earlier this year, Johnson created a Hinge profile with prompts like “the key to my heart is being pro-choice” and “together we could vote on April 4th and get drinks after.” The goal behind Johnson’s efforts was to match with men on dating apps, and when they messaged her she would ensure that they were registered and pledged to vote. Johnson began this new canvassing method at the height of the pandemic, when NextGen switched to virtual organizing because they could no longer hold a significant presence on college campuses due to COVID-19. Johnson believes her innovative approach may be significantly more effective than ordinary remote canvassing methods for younger demographics; she emphasized this saying, “young people are not picking up a phone call. They’re deleting a text pretty quickly after we send them.”

 
Visit The Guardian to learn more