Does your Instagram demographic include any politicians? The way the entire world communicates and connects with each other has seen immense changes in the past decade. The politicians we once only saw on television screens or political campaigns can now be known from a much closer proximity thanks to social media.
Take Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand for example. Her Insatgram consists of approximately 1.7 million followers. She often engages with her followers through Instagram live, stories and posts, updating her followers about her work, what she and her office achieves every month as well as important events and goals. However, through her stories and Instagram lives, her followers are also able to get a sneak peak into her personal life. In a recent live, she was interrupted by her daughter for her bedtime. In this small moment of interaction between Prime Minister Ardern and her daughter, we were reminded that besides running a country, she, like many people in the world, is also a parent. Candid moments like this enable citizens to connect with their leaders, get a glimpse of who they are as a person beyond their office. I think this is quite important as we are trusting this individual to make vital decisions that will affect our life. Prime Minister Ardren’s Instagram is the perfect place to find quick updates about the ongoing plans she and her office has been working on, what they have achieved so far and what they plan to do in the future to make the life of New Zealanders easier.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), who is the representative of New York’s 14th congressional district, is also very active on her Instagram profile which consists of 8.6 million followers. She has a separate account dedicated for official posts about her job as a congresswoman with 1.4 million followers. She frequently does Q/A sessions through her Instagram stories, answering questions about her job and what her duties entail. She is also very active in keeping her followers updated about any new rule surrounding COVID-19 and vaccination policies. Between her full time job, you can find her dropping laundry, going for a jog and running errands. If you are curious about what a representative’s job entails, and what one’s life may look like with such a job, her account is the perfect place to be. Her candid representation of her job gives a perfect glance into the life of a politician.
Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan is an activist who advocates for public health and education and is known for her strong stance against honour killing. Her Instagram consists of a follower count of 6.5 million. Her profile captures her in her royal duties, her family life and her role in advocacy. Queen Rania’s active role in social media has created a space for raising awareness against the stereotypes about Arab countries. She communicates with her followers through posts, stories and IG tv and keeps them updated about her work, her cause while also giving us a sneak peak into her day to day life.
Social media has really changed the way political figures can connect with people. Not only is it helpful for the political figures themselves, but it also benefits the general public as it allows them to know their political leaders more closely. With proper utilization and opportunities for interaction, social media can become a safe place for people to communicate their wants and needs with these leaders. As Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok and other social media platforms have become the dominant sources of information for the younger generation, it seems that social media is the place to be for politicians if they want to connect with the next generation of voters.