Huey Rey Fischer may only be 23 years old, but he has every intention of becoming the next state representative in Texas’ District 49, which includes the University of Texas at Austin.
A long-time incumbent recently vacated the seat, and Fischer, a queer, vegetarian, Latino “progressive Democrat on a bicycle” is hoping to snag it.
To do that he knows he’ll need to lock up the student vote, but how best to engage with ever-distracted millennials who roam the campus with necks crooked down towards their phones?
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There are the conventional answers — campus canvassing, early voting drives, campaigning on student issues like debt — all of which Fischer is focusing on.
And then there’s Grindr. And Tinder.
Fischer’s campaign is trying to reach young people where it really counts — their dating apps.
Speaking to Slate, Fischer elaborated on his approach:
My campaign was brainstorming ideas about how to engage with millennials. With Facebook and Twitter, people have to opt in—but when it comes to Grindr and Tinder, it’s direct engagement, direct conversations. It’s a medium that my opponents would never be able to use, anyway; it probably wouldn’t be appropriate for a 45-year-old to be messaging millennials on dating apps. We figured it’d be a fun way to engage with voters.
Asked whether he uses his own phone for the chats:
No. There’s a phone in the office dedicated to Tinder and Grindr outreach. We let volunteers come in and strike up messages with people on the apps, as long as they stay on message. “Hey, how’s it going, are you registered to vote?” “Go vote in the Democratic primary for Huey Rey Fischer!” “Huey Rey Fischer is the progressive choice on the ballot!” And so on.
Fischer elaborates that his campaign has a strict policy of keeping the chats PG.
So what does he do when things get a little, well, Grindr-y?
We’ve definitely had people say, “You’ve got my vote, and by the way, I’d love to get coffee with you sometime.” We’ve had to shy away from those offers and opportunities. We’ve had people message us and say, “hey, what are you looking for?”, which is very suggestive. Our immediate reply was, “Your vote!” We walk a fine line. If anybody sends something unsolicited and not election-oriented, we just delete the conversation. We don’t really engage beyond that point.
As for Fischer himself, he responds like a politician when asked if he’s ever used Grindr and Tinder to meet people outside of campaigning.
I’ve definitely used Tinder before; I’ve never personally used Grindr. Most people my age are on Tinder. It’s a great way to communicate with and meet people. But I have a boyfriend—we’ve known each other since freshman year at UT.
It’s the digital version of “I smoked, but I didn’t inhale.”
And in case you’re wondering, Fischer and his boyfriend met the old-fashioned way — at a campus Democrats meeting.
Related: Antigay Republican Lawmaker Caught Cruising Grindr For A Winter Cuddle Bud
Nelson Castro
is this democracy ? ;(
James Rumsey
What’s he doing giving out blowjobs for votes?
Mike Topjian
Courageous young man.
AnTonio L Larcusi
ahhhh the magical power of Grindr���
Xzamilio
I was on board until I heard the self-description…
Paco
I think I would be turned off by being harassed about politics on an app designed for hooking up, unless the politician was looking to hook up. But then, there is very little I understand about millennials. Strange generation.
Joshua Devin Byrd
That’s great.
Larry
I LOVE the idea. You can communicate any way you choose on Grindr and Tinder so why not. The last time I checked, both were used for regular chat all the time.
unreligious
As someone who had parents with a twenty year age difference, he lost me when he said it would not be appropriate for a 45 year old to be messaging millennials That is so judgmental, especially for a gay person when so many say we are not appropriate.
dbmcvey
These things don’t usually go well.
CWM85
Once they find out he’s openly gay no way will Texas vote for him. Dem district or not.
NateOcean
Well if he’s “young, queer, and vegetarian” he has my vote!
Is he “well-hung” too? Pics to prove it?
Oh, wait, what’s he stance on immigration? Trump’s wall?
What about affordable education? Student loan interest rates?
What his plan for addressing our degraded infrastructure? Particularly highways?
Does he have a workable tax plan that strikes a balance between societal needs yet is fair to corporations and the well-off?
Yeah, but he’s so cute.
Bonnie Gordon
Very intelligent man. That is a good way to get votes, we need more of him in our government.
Condor221
@CWM85: Really? What about the Lesbian Mayor of Houston?
Ron Pope
Y E S !
Transiteer
I wish him well and all success! He might be the one bright light in a dark totalitarian state that shows democracy might just work there.
o.codone
meh, actually, no.
Rusty Angel
Good way to get his name out there to the gay community! 🙂
Antony Nguyen
You better work
Clayton Westfall
going to shake every hand huh?
robho3
Ummm maybe its just me but I find it a bit tacky to do this on grindr. Grindr is a sex hook up site. Twitter or snap chat -yes but Grindr? Did he advertise on gay porn sites too? Idk I’m just an old fart all-this social media I find really stupid.
Jboo
This would really piss me off actually. You have zero intentions of dating, yet go on to a dating app for the purposes of political solicitation? I don’t think so. I already don’t like this guy.
Brent Haugen
Atta girl!
DeserTBoB
Nope, no way. Gays are only 1% appx. of the population. Even if you turned out ALL gay men, women, ts, whatthehellever of the übergay set, it’s not nearly enough to sway an election, even in Austin, and “queer” doesn’t “sell well” ANYWHERE in TX, even with the bi and d/l crowd. Have fun, guy…just be gracious when you lose.
DeserTBoB
@Rusty Angel: ..as IF that’ll do any good. It’s won’t. Gay political clout anywhere in TX is ZERO. Houston was clear proof of not only that, but that blacks will NOT support LGBT anything, anywhere. Time to cut the cord with them for good; they’re more enemies of ours than friends.
DeserTBoB
@Paco: @Condor221: What about Houston voting DOWN the HOPE ordinance, thanks to blacks refusing to support it? That went down in flames, and she’s only going to last one term because of it. Get a grip…the height of gay political power occurred in the 1970s…it’s over now.
Jarrod T Wraight
Josh Spiegel.
You could do a campaign like this!
Just think of all the guys you’ve spoken to and met from Grindr!
You’d be a shoe in ð???
silveroracle
I’m sure what he’s doing is against Grindr’s terms and conditions.
Realitycheck
Clever!!! And what ever it takes to beat a conservative anti LGTB republican bigot!!!
Kieru
I can’t decide if this is clever or out-of-touch.
On the clever side… he’s reaching out to people within the community via a tool that they use.
On the out-of-touch side… Grindr is about sex, not politics. It seems almost offensive to me that he would try to subvert the App to push his political career. That seems like something that could easily backfire, and stinks so bad of the sort of out-of-touch move a politician would make because they are trying to be “on trend”
On the Better Approach side… Snapchat, Periscope, KIK. There are a million apps for connecting you to people in a method that isn’t exclusively to get naked and sweaty.
The Tower of Power
@Kieru: @Kieru: Or how about Facebook lol. It’s designed for this.
onthemark
@Paco: “But then, there is very little I understand about millennials. Strange generation.”
I wonder how many of these guys tell him, “Yeah, I’ll vote for you! What number do I send the text to?”