A new approach to campaigning has emerged over the last few months, which has been used by some former political outsiders to move themselves into the fore. How have they done this and what lessons can individuals and organisations take?  

Nine months ago, Zohran Mamdani was polling at 1% in the Democratic primaries. Now, having received 50.4% of the vote on Tuesday night, he is New York’s Mayor-elect. To some, he’s a democratic socialist; to others (mostly presidents), a “lunatic communist.” His true fans know him as rap sensation Mr Cardamom. At just 34, Mamdani is the youngest New York mayor in over a century, and the first Muslim and South Asian to hold the role. His campaign took a fresh approach, bringing tactics gleaned from influencers into the political sphere, which appears to have helped galvanise support from the New York electorate, and highlighted to other politicians that this can work.

If an insurgent ‘leftie’ defying expectations with their influencer-style approach sounds familiar, it’s probably because Green Party leader Zack Polanski is busy doubling his party’s membership, and climbing to second place in one poll. Last week, Polanski welcomed American political commentator and Twitch streamer Hasan Piker (whose 2024 presidential election coverage racked up more than 7.5 million views) to his new podcast, Bold Politics to discuss Mamdani. The top comment read: ‘Could you imagine Keir Starmer chatting casually on a podcast like this?’ – and this underscores the key point; politicians, and indeed all communicators, need to be able to span the media landscape beyond traditional media – if you are not ‘meeting people where they are’, then you are missing opportunities.

Of course, communicating to audiences via social media is hardly a new phenomenon. Utilising Facebook to identify and target key voters was central to Obama’s 2012 campaign, Trump also adopts a staunch social-first approach with X, Truth Social, et al. and collaborating with Twitch streamers and podcasters (take Joe Rogan). The social sphere may not be these individuals’ natural home, but they serve an integral role in unlocking new audiences. But the likes of Mamdani and Polanski are now building on the lessons of campaigns gone by to craft digital-first campaigns which open up an otherwise fractured media landscape to candidates outside of the political mainstream.

Take this example of Mamdani on Subway Takes, a vox-pop style talk show where interviewees present and defend their unique or controversial opinion, their "take", on the subway using a lapel mic attached to a MetroCard, which is racking up millions of views across platforms TikTok and YouTube. His main opponent, Andrew Cuomo, could simply not have created such an active and vibrant campaign (and did not). Mamdani navigates this with ease and defies the expectations of the traditional politician – who are often viewed as unrelatable to many voters, especially young people.

Polanski is flipping the script too, whether that be hounding Piers Morgan or engaging in the latest TikTok trends and it being slightly (just slightly) less cringey than your average UK party leader. He is also posting…a lot. It is a tried and tested way to stay at the front of people’s minds – be everywhere and keep hammering your simple key messages home. Presently, his core call to action is pushing Green Party signups, which is one of the present headline campaigns for his party, and so every post includes a link directing users to register.

Going beyond the left-leaning echo chamber is something that the Mamdani campaign has used, allowing them to reach new potential voters, rather than remaining complacent. He was recently on a podcast which had previously featured and supported Donald Trump during his election campaign, yet seamlessly got on with the hosts and emphasised his key messages, reaching new audiences. But how? Both politicians are not just meeting their audiences in the spaces they inhabit, they are talking to them in ways they understand. They sound like the everyman, rather than the political elite, and this tone also allows them to navigate the debate with a sense of relatability and authenticity, all while providing some nice soundbites for their socials in the process.

Inevitably, with Mamdani’s win, politicians on both sides of the pond are trying to emulate this success, heralding the rise of “Mamdanislop”. Why is Robert Jenrick always walking? Why is Kemi Badenoch using a slightly yellow filter on some of her video content? Why is a Texan Representative bringing a drone to a State Fair? They are following tactics that Mamdani has recently used, and to a lesser extent Polanski, who has been borrowing from the Mamdani playbook. This is being done to varying degrees of success, but some are missing the key ingredient – it is actually quite hard to do, you need charisma, authenticity and confidence, something that your average legislator can lack.

As noted in our previous blog on Mamdani, he is able to appear authentic and to be listening to his electorate by localising messaging, but it remains to be seen if this can be replicated by Polanski on a national-level. Generally, New Yorkers all know what Mamdani means when he discusses hot dog stands or bodegas, but for Polanski, what is local for someone in the Humber is unlikely to be local for someone in Hertfordshire. His next hurdle will be if he can keep up this momentum and handle himself under constant media scrutiny and political pressure as he continues to emerge as a challenger. Similarly, Mamdani’s campaign has given him the keys to New York, but he will face a tough job, and he will need to learn how to move from campaigning to business as usual – how will he communicate the impact of his policies, the hard decisions that he will have to take or respond to the key issues?

So, what can organisations take from this? It is a good case study into how to reach audiences in the current climate, and like with prior campaigns, there are lessons that can be learned. The fractured nature of the media landscape gives you the opportunity to tell your own story, a challenge to traditional media’s dominance and removing the need to rely on a journalist’s interpretation.

There is a lot of focus on “authenticity”, but this can only be achieved by understanding your audience, where they are, the key messages that they respond to and how to talk to them. An organisation cannot have a separate digital and media strategy – they are one and the same: ensuring the correct messages are amplified, the correct tone of voice is used, and the correct audiences are reached through an integrated approach.

Looking to build an integrated strategy that cuts through the noise? Contact us at digital@cardewgroup.com