Viewers of the current series of The Good Wife will be familiar with the campaign whereby Alicia Florrick is running for the State’s Attorney office. In a deliberate attempt to damage her campaign, Governor Peter Florrick announces across the airways that she is a ‘shoe in’ according to the polls. When a result is viewed as a ‘shoe in’, supporters frequently don’t turn out to vote, believing their vote will be of little or no significance.
This is likely the reason why supporters of the yes vote on the upcoming May 22 marriage equality referendum are taking to social media to promote their campaign. They are using social media to connect with the younger demographic, which has the greatest support for marriage equality, but who are least likely to turn out to vote.
Yes Equality, the largest group campaigning for the yes vote on the referendum, launched a free app to promote its cause. The app encourages people to share selfies on social media in support of marriage equality. The co-director of Yes Equality, Brian Sheehan, has reported that over 130,000 photos have been taken with the app, which has led to the registration of 40,000 new voters.
While current polls show the yes vote has a strong lead, both polling experts and politicians are cautioning that the vote may be closer than the polls indicate. Voter turn out will be crucial to the campaign, which is why yes supporters are taking to social media to encourage participation.
A recent survey of 1,000 Irish youth ages 18-35 indicated that while 90% would vote yes in the referendum, only 55% planned to vote. Among the group 77% ranked social media as their top source for information regarding the referendum. The research indicates that social media may be a key factor for the yes campaign, as the demographic with the highest approval for marriage equality, may be the one that’s least likely to turn out to vote.
On social media #MarRef has been used 100,000 times over the last 30 days, gaining over 1.8 million impressions daily. There has also been a rise in Google searches about the referendum. Yes Equality is hoping that the increased traffic will allow them to motivate the younger generation to exercise their right to vote.
On the flip side the No campaign also have a strong presence on social media. The No campaign is lagging behind slightly on social media platforms due to the strong influence from the Yes campaigners, with support from political parties and celebrities who have taken to their personal social media accounts to express their thoughts. Twitter also declared that its Dublin office will be voting yes on May 22nd.
It seems the No campaigners are representing their views through more traditional forms of media such as newspapers television and radio. The use of traditional media may be tactical in targeting and influencing certain demographic profiles to vote No.
We have no doubt that social media will play a critical role in getting the vote out on May 22nd.