Tweeting to Victory; Social Media Is the Key to Upsetting Obama

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Byline: Anthony Welcher, SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON TIMES

The candidates who grasp how technology is changing the political landscape and engage one-on-one with their voters in the coming months will have a big advantage this fall. Candidates like Republican Rob McKenna, running for governor of Washington state, will win even when the electoral odds should be stacked against them in blue states. More than 50 percent of the U.S. population and 65 percent of registered voters have a smartphone, and the majority of them are using Facebook and other social networking venues. On mobile devices, more than 30 percent of the usage is dedicated to social media. These tools are empowering grass-roots voters to share ideas, validate or repudiate political leaders and make instant multimedia pressure a factor in how a modern democracy works. …