She’s not a regular politician, she’s a cool politician, or so her campaign wants us to think. But if Hillary Clinton is so “hip” and “relatable,” then why all the blatant pandering towards Millennials?
Despite her foray into the young people’s world of social media, her sassy Snapchat, and numerous celebrity endorsements, Hills still falls behind her opponent Bernie Sanders when it comes to the Millennial demographic.
According to The Harvard Institute of Politics’ annual survey, Sanders leads Clinton 41%-35% among Millennials, and in Iowa and New Hampshire, Clinton’s 74-year old opponent holds nearly 60% of the voters under age 45.
So what’s a gal to do when she just wants to know what the young people are up to these days?
The Clinton campaign, determined to not lose the youth vote like they did in 2008 to Obama, is full-speed-ahead, utilizing every tool to make Hillary appeal to Millennials.
She’s on Instagram and Snapchat, has been doing interviews targeted at outlets that the kids pay attention to, like Buzzfeed’s Another Round podcast.
Her celebrity friends are a part of it too — Girls star Lena Dunham, who also interviewed Hillary, is set to hit the campaign trail in Iowa for Clinton. Katy Perry, another Hillary stand-in, has also offered her likability among millennials to the politician. Though it seems that the coveted young people were more interested in seeing the singer than the grandma, Clinton.
And as if acting like she’s down-to-earth and in-touch with young people wasn’t enough, Clinton used her theatrical skills to film an appearance in Comedy Central’s “Broad City” set to air next year.
But according to last week’s Des Moines Register poll, though she holds the support of voters 65 and older, Clinton still trails Sanders when it comes to people 45 and younger.
Lynda Tran, former spokeswoman for President Obama’s Organizing for America campaign says that for Clinton, her best bet is sticking to the strategy they’ve already started.
“The Clinton campaign team in particular has already demonstrated real savvy in their approach, with concerted efforts on everything from Snapchat to Periscope, from college organizing teams to interviews with thought leaders and perceived trendsetter like Lena Dunham,” Tran said according to CNN.
But what out-of-touch political strategists praise as Hillary’s social media “savvy,” actual voters see right through as pandering and desperate attempts to connect on a shallow level.
When Hillary tweeted to students asking them to describe how their student loan debt made them feel using “3 emojis or less,” young voters felt talked-down to and called for Clinton to “treat Millennials like adults, not children.”
As the race for the White House continues to ramp up, it is inevitable that Clinton’s efforts will as well. Most likely, in the form of more Snaps, irrelevant celebrity campaigners, and, hopefully, tweets longer than 3 emojis.
