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Can political apps send more young people to the polls?23 August 2016
The Voter app makes recommendations based on politicians' past speeches and voting records
Young people between the ages of 18 and 35 make up about 31% of the eligible voting population in the US, and they will soon be the largest group in the electorate.
Although they frequently talk about politics online, these so-called 'millennials' are traditionally less likely to vote than older people.
Developers have created a host of new apps targeting this age group.
But are they enough to encourage the smartphone generation to become more politically engaged?
'Tinder for politics'
Apps like Voter build on existing formats to introduce users to political candidates who align with their own beliefs.
Created by 26-year-old web developer Hunter Scarborough, Voter allows users to swipe left and right through a number of political candidates until they find the ideal match.
You could describe it as a political form of Tinder.
Voter aims to match users with their "perfect" political candidates
Scarborough says he created the app after becoming frustrated by the lack of political news sources he felt he could trust.
"I didn't want to vote on a sound bite from a news anchor, or a sound bite from a family member," he says.
"I looked at the wealth of raw political data becoming available, and realized there could be a much faster and more accurate way to become informed."
Scarborough is convinced apps like his can have a positive impact on turnout.
"If someone has a horse in the race, they're much more likely to participate," he says.
"So if you use the app and you have a strong degree of confidence in who you match for, you are much more likely to be at the polls when election day comes, " he adds.
Unlike Voter, the Brigade app - which builds on a Facebook-style model to encourage public political discussion online - does not allow users to choose whether to share their political information with others.
Brigade describes itself as being the world's first network for voters
The social networking app works by asking a series of questions about political issues, allowing users to mark 'agree', 'disagree' or 'unsure'.
They can then see how they compare to their friends, followers and the wider population of users.
Brigade stresses the "huge potential" of apps to help younger voters get involved in politics, but recognises the difficulty in ensuring they remain interested.
"The hard part is getting to a scale that ensures people's voices and votes have real influence," says its spokesman Andrew Noyes.
"Those of us operating at the intersection of tech and politics must lead with issues millennials care about and find ways to keep them engaged by taking action with friends and neighbours.
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