September 23, 2015
Chloe Billstrom
Signing autographs, putting up yard signs, shaking hands of voters: This is what presidential hopefuls have been doing in past elections to promote themselves. However, candidates have recently shifted gears towards social media to connect with a new audience, the millennials.
As a millennial myself, I was intrigued by candidates changing their tactics and its effectiveness to captivate young voters. When I began learning about politics in school, I frankly wasn't interested. Within minutes, I was zoned out due to the tedious descriptions and monotone voices in videos.
However, over time I began to increase my interest in politics because of social media. Reading about hot topic issues on Twitter or Facebook made me actually relate to what was going on in the world. With a more engaging way of learning, I’ve begun to grow my own political opinions.
Now, after a few years of expanding my knowledge, my feelings on the topic of presidential debate have evolved from making me groan to wanting to vote in the next election. Although highly debated among political aficionados about whether it’s a waste of time for candidates, social media was able to ignite that flame for me and other young voters.
Going forward, I hope to be as involved in the elections as fellow millennials like the “presidential selfie girls”. Whether that be through social media and selfies or through a handshake, it’s clear that the presidential campaigns are evolving, debatably for the better.
Chloe - nicely written reaction. It is so good to hear that our young people are not only learning about things like the election but getting prepared to be an active citizen by engaging in the learning and developing your own political views.
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