BLK Dating App Partners with Michelle Obama’s Voting Initiative

BLK dating app has announced a partnership with former First Lady Michelle Obama’s voting initiative “When We All Vote” to help drive people to register and vote, ahead of the midterm elections.

According to Cassius Life, the popular dating app for black singles created an in-app Election Center, which prompts users automatically when they open the app to engage with a choice – “Share Your Voice” or “Shift the Culture.” When users select “Share Your Voice” they are asked to choose an issue that is important to them, such as “universal healthcare” or “affordable housing,” which will be displayed on their profiles to engage other users.

If users prefer not to pick an issue, they can choose “Shift the Culture,” which provides a link to register to vote. BLK also provides push notifications, so users know important dates and deadlines, from the last day to register to vote to when election day is.

When We All Vote found that 80 percent of BLK users are already registered to vote, but 66 percent of its young Gen Z users didn’t know the date of the midterm elections (and 52 percent overall didn’t know the date, which is Tuesday November 8th). And according to Cassius Life, of those not registered to vote, 42 percent said they plan to register before the midterm elections. When We All Vote want to make sure people know deadlines, where to go, and how to register if they need to in the hopes of increasing voter turnout.

Even with high voter registration, it turns out that most BLK singles don’t mind if the people they date aren’t interested in elections and politics. In a survey the company conducted, they found that seventy percent of BLK daters said they will still date someone who intentionally chooses not to vote, so the app hopes the partnership will help inspire more engagement about voting, and therefore increase turnout.

In terms of dealbreakers, the study found that Trump supporters were a no-go (38 percent of users would not date them), 34 percent of users wouldn’t date anyone who identifies as pro-life, and ten percent said they wouldn’t date anyone who was anti-universal healthcare and anti-LGBTQ.

“Democracy can often feel out of reach and out of touch, but we know it doesn’t have to be that way. With BLK’s new Election Center, we are bringing the fight for our democracy and real change in our communities to Black voters in a way that is empowering and engaging,” Stephanie L. Young, executive director of When We All Vote said in a press release.  “Together, we will change the culture around voting and ensure our communities’ voices are heard in the midterm elections and beyond.”