May 13, 2025 - Politics & Policy

Scoop: Senate Dems told to get on Twitch, Snapchat

Stephen Neukam

U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) leads a sit-in protest against a Republican budget plan on the House steps of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on April 27, 2025. — Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) on the steps of the U.S. Capitol on April 27. Photo: Bryan Dozier/Middle East Images via AFP

Top Senate Democrats are challenging their older colleagues to embrace Twitch and Snapchat, a potential shock to the media operations of a caucus in which nearly a third of the members are over 70.

Why it matters: Democrats are scrambling to reach younger voters after their tough losses last year. But they're making progress against Republicans in daily social media engagement, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) told them in a private briefing last week.

Booker hosted the briefing for lawmakers, focusing on how Democrats can win over the support of sporadic voters who broke for President Trump last year.
Members from the pro-democracy advocacy group Democracy Sentry briefed Democrats, according to sources familiar with the meeting.

The big picture: Some progressives — notably Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) — have already flocked to platforms like Twitch to expand their audience. However, it is a space that Senate Democrats haven't used widely.

But Democrats must experiment with platforms they haven't used in the past, the lawmakers were told.
Democrats lost the nontraditional media game to Republicans in the lead-up to the 2024 election, with Trump and other GOP figures appearing on popular podcasts and internet shows that attract younger voters.

Booker hosted the briefing for Democrats as part of his new leadership position, which he has used to try to transform the caucus' media strategy.

Between the lines: Booker shared a chart, reviewed by Axios, which shows that Senate Democrats last month averaged nearly 1.4 million more social media engagements per day than Republicans.

The Senate GOP, the data said, had an advantage of 44,000 more engagements per day in November.

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Scoop: Senate Dems told to get on Twitch, Snapchat

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