"It's this digital savviness and authentic engagement with social media platforms to which pundits across the political spectrum have attributed to Mamdani's triumphant and decisive win Tuesday night. From the start, his team outclassed his opponents online, publishing highly-produced videos that reached massive audiences. But that's only half of the story. Much of the content about Mamdani online isn't just coming from his campaign, or the dozens of political influencers invited to cover it. It's come from his fans."
"For the last few months, feeds have been filled with fancams, fan art, and videos created not just with Mamdani, but for him. This form of participatory online fandom has traditionally been reserved for celebrities and musicians like Taylor Swift or K-pop idols. The young voters who came out in support of Mamdani in droves this week grew up engaging with their favs online in these ways, establishing something incredibly rare for the 34-year-old mayor-elect-a fandom."
Zohran Mamdani's New York City mayoral campaign combined high-production campaign videos with authentic engagement across social media platforms, reaching massive audiences. Much of the online content about Mamdani originated from supporters rather than the campaign or influencers, including fancams, fan art, and remixed videos. Young voters applied participatory fandom skills from celebrity culture to political organizing, helping mobilize turnout. Online posts remixed rally clips into tight videos set to popular songs and showcased digital art. Campaign quips and moments were edited and amplified by fans. The result created a rare fandom for a 34-year-old mayor-elect that dominated digital spaces.
Read at WIRED
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