If you’re in Miami and you’ve been on TikTok, you may have seen a now-viral video by congressional candidate Ken Russell. It starts with a girl, dancing to a Megan Thee Stallion song.
And then out of nowhere, there’s Ken Russell crouched down on the ground. And he’s asking if you’re registered to vote.
This video has over 400,000 views. And it’s just one example of how the Democratic candidates running to represent District 27 are reaching out to voters through new – and unconventional – social media campaigns.
Annette Taddeo is competing for the Democratic nomination against Ken Russell. And like Russell, she’s constantly on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook.
“It's a way to get into the living room or the phone of a voter, for them to see who you truly are, where you stand on issues and constantly communicate that,” Taddeo said.
Taddeo says that in South Florida, online campaigning is even more important because of how active Hispanic voters are on social media. She translates most of her Facebook and Twitter content into Spanish for that reason.
But according to Taddeo, there’s a bigger problem.
“There’s a lot of misinformation out there being spread through social media, and then it spreads into other places that aren't necessarily platforms, but that people are using,” she said.
Her strategy is to be present and engage with the apps most relevant to Hispanic voters in South Florida. That’s why her latest voter mobilization tactic is actually on WhatsApp...
Read the full story at WLRN.org.
