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Love Donald Trump or hate him, there’s no denying he ignites passionate responses from both sides. But could the Republican presidential candidate ignite a passion of a different kind? Two new dating sites think the answer is yes.

In the pro-Donald camp is TrumpSingles.com, founded by a 35-year-old Republican hailing from Santa Clarita, California. Goss was inspired to create the site when he realized how difficult it can be to date someone with opposing political views.

“I think there’s a special stigma when people say they’re supporting Trump, because of some of the brash things that he’s said,” Goss told the New York Post. “That immediately gets [projected] on his supporters, and it makes it hard for them when trying to date.”

More than 500 users have reportedly joined TrumpSingles since it went live in May, primarily located in New York City, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC. Goss expressed fears that people would think it’s a parody site, but so far enough seem to understand his original intentions.

“People have told me that they’re so happy they can finally go on dates without worrying about political differences,” he said.

On the other side of the political spectrum is MapleMatch.com, a site that hopes to make dating great again by helping Americans find a Canadian partner in the event of a Trump presidency.

A 25-year-old Texan named Joe Goldman is the brain behind Maple Match. Goldman told NBC News that he was inspired by repeated threats from friends to flee the country if Trump wins the election in November.

"I have always been fascinated by Canada," he added. "So I thought to myself, 'Given the current political situation, this could bring Canadians and Americans closer together'."

His hunch may have been a good one. In just a week, a reported 13,000 people have signed up for the site. "The response has been tremendous,” Goldman said. "I'm getting people from all over, but the strongest responses have been from Seattle and New York City.”

Trump isn’t the only presidential candidate inspiring love. For Democrats, there’s BernieSingles.com. The site promises to “connect progressives beyond social media to inspire chemistry among folks who share similar visions of the future.” It also comes with the most memorable tagline of the bunch: “The 1% are not the only ones getting screwed this election season.”

Trump? Check. Sanders? Check. Hillary - it’s your move now.

Are you a Republican or Democrat? According to a study by dating website Match, most people looking to date wouldn’t care one way or another, but something has changed in 2016, and people are becoming more polarized and politically active.  

Perhaps it’s the entertainment aspect that Donald Trump has brought to the campaign trail, or the enthusiastic support of Bernie Sanders among young liberal voters, but something has shifted in the collective American psyche---so much so, that it has inspired two new dating apps.

So now the question has become: Are you a fan of Bernie Sanders, or not a fan of Donald Trump? Regardless of how you feel, there are two new dating sites you should know about.

Bernie Singles launched a few months back, when app developers found that there was a real market for young activists looking to meet each other – for friendship or something more. It seemed that many Bernie Sanders fans on Facebook were eager to meet like-minded activists in person, and there was an instant show of support for the dating app.

Bernie Singles definitely embraces the progressive slant of the candidate who first inspired it. When you join, you can register as male, female, genderqueer or transgender - and as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, queer or asexual. There’s no gender bias, which also seems to be a good selling point.

In fact, so many people downloaded it when it first launched that the site crashed in the first week. Several thousand have joined to date.

Not to ignore the dating app potential with the current political groundswell of young activists, there will soon be an app for those looking to avoid a Trump Presidency. Maple Match, whose tagline is “Make Dating Great Again” – a play on Trump’s campaign slogan of “Make America Great Again” – has been making headlines with the announcement of its product, coming soon to market.  The app promises to find Americans who are looking to flee a potential Trump Presidency some Canadian matches. Even before its launch, 5,000 people have signed up for the site.

As it turns out, Trump isn’t the only reason Americans want to flee the country. According to a recent interview in The Guardian, Joe Goldman, Maple Match’s founder said: "This site shows that a lot of people are frustrated with the current dating options. A lot of Americans really want to meet Canadians. They're looking for something new and something better."

Bernie Singles is coy in its approach, noting on its website: “The one percent aren’t the only ones getting screwed this election season!” 

Either way, politics has entered the mix in online dating. We'll see what happens in 2017.

"Are you an overworked tech industry employee? Does it feel like you are spending more of your precious time putting out fires than searching for sparks in your own life? If potential suitors are struggling to understand your SQL skills, or if trying to explain Java over an Americano is leaving you feeling frustrated, we can help."

Thus begins the homepage of the newest company to join the jam-packed dating industry. DateADev promises to be the professional version of the friend you go to for dating advice. The company, launched by two Amazon employees this month, aims to help struggling techies find love online.

Becca Goldman and Mahvish Gazipura came up with the idea for DateADev after hearing countless stories from frustrated colleagues who had no luck in love, especially when it came to online dating.

“We both work at Amazon and are surrounded by software developers and project managers all the time,” Goldman told GeekWire. “We just noticed their need. We talk to them all the time about their frustrations with dating — they are a great target audience.”

The process begins with a consultation ($99 for 1 hour) in person or via video chat in which a DateADev coach reviews a client’s profile - aka their online brand - to suggest improvements. Coach and client also discuss dating history, strategy, and goals. Upgrade to the “Perfect Match” option for a more in depth, 2-hour consultation.

For additional help, the company offers three monthly membership packages:

• Silver Membership: Designed for the casual dater, a Silver membership includes 8 interactions per month, a personal brand review and optimization of 2 accounts, and 24/7 support from coaches ($259/mo)
• Gold Membership: A Gold membership, meant for singles with long-term relationships in mind, promises 16 interactions per month, a personal brand review and optimization of 4 accounts, and 24/7 support from coaches ($399/mo)
• Platinum Membership: Platinum members are serious about finding a soulmate - with that aim in mind, they receive unlimited interactions each month, a personal brand review and optimization of unlimited accounts, and 24/7 support from coaches ($599)

For now, the service is aimed at residents of Seattle, where Goldman and Gazipura live. “Seattle has the most online daters of any other city, even San Francisco,” said Gazipura, “which is shocking.”

Given that Seattle the home of multiple tech companies - including the aforementioned Amazon - it’s a smart move. “It makes it harder to stand out amongst all of the quality candidates,” Gazipura said. “There are a lot of successful, smart people with great jobs, a good personality, and a good education, but how do you set yourself apart from such a great pool? That’s why we are focusing on tech workers.”

DateADev is currently only a side project, but both founders are open to pursuing it full-time if the idea takes off.

Lone Star Introductions, a matchmaking service operating in the state of Texas to help singles find love, was forced to cease operations and pay restitution to its former customers. According to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office, the judgment came from a lawsuit against the Massachusetts based company ‘for violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and Texas Internet Dating Safety Act.’

A state district court issued an injunction that calls on the dating service and affiliated dating sites, including eLove Matchmaking, International Dating Ventures and International Introductions, to cease operations in the state. Lone Star Introductions was using multiple company names to pursue its aggressive tactics, and was informed by the state of Texas two years ago that they were being investigated.

The attorney general says the company uses lead generating companies to mine online dating services for customer contacts, then uses the information to make cold calls in Texas, without registering as a telemarketer. They would pressure prospective clients to meet in the Lone Star Introductions offices to sign expensive contracts for dating services which they would then not provide.

According to website Courthouse News, Lone Star Introductions was particularly ruthless when it came to getting money from vulnerable clients. According to court documents, once Lone Star would get a phone number, they "use high pressure and coercive tactics" to try to get targets to sign up, including "incessant phone calls," coercion and manipulation. "Defendants charge consumers between $7,995 and $12,995 for prospective dating introductions," the state says.

Lone Star calls its telemarketers "counselors,” but according to Paxton’s office were little more than aggressive telemarketers.

Courthouse News goes on to note the following from the lawsuit: "Consumers who complained to defendants and requested to cancel their contracts are harassed and threatened by defendants with financial ruin and criminal prosecution. One consumer alleges that an eLove representative 'yelled four-letter curse words at [him], threatened to destroy [his] credit, prosecute [him] for a felony, and report [him] to the Texas Attorney General's Office' when the consumer attempted to cancel his contract."

According to Paxton’s office this type of harassment and threat to consumers violates debt collection regulations. Also, the “Counselors” at Lone Star Introductions failed to comply with the Texas Internet Dating Safety Act, which includes advising customers of safe dating practices.

The final judgment ordered the defendant to pay $500,000 in civil penalties and pay $20,000 in restitution to customers.

Every actor knows that headshots are a key piece of the professional puzzle. Without a flattering photo, bookings will be few and far between.

Online daters face the same problem. Without the right pictures, your profile is doomed to be skipped over – even if the rest of it is perfect.

It’s standard practice to seek professional headshots for business cards, websites and even social media accounts, so why not for online dating profiles? In fact, it's becoming increasingly common for singles to do exactly that.

DatingHeadshots is a large network of professional dating photographers and profile writers working in the US and Canada. The company partners with top dating coaches and matchmakers to create a 'personal brand' for clients, enabling them to put their best foot forward online.

Here's how it works:

1. Step One: Enter your zipcode to see a list of recommended photographers in your area.
2. Step Two: Select your preferred photographer.
3. Step Three: Select the package you want and schedule your shoot.
4. Step Four: Select any add-on services you want and make your payment.
5. Step Five: Shoot. You will shoot for 45-60 minutes. During that time, you will be able to make 2-3 wardrobe changes and your photographer will take a variety of different looks, from headshots to full body photos.
6. Step Six: Download your photos. Within 48 hours of your shoot, you will receive a link to a private online portfolio of your pictures. Choose your favorites to save.

DatingHeadshots offers several packages tailored to a range of needs. The simplest, Silver, is available for $159. The Silver package includes a 45-minute in-studio shoot, 50 photos and 2 wardrobe changes. Upgrade to Gold ($199) for double the photos, 3 wardrobe changes, a 60-minute shoot, and the option of sepia or black and white photos.

For on-location shoots, choose the Emerald or Sapphire packages. Emerald (starting at $159) offers 50 photos and 2 wardrobe changes over 45 minutes. A 60-minute Sapphire shoot (starting at $199) offers 100 photos, 3 wardrobe changes, and black and white or sepia images.

Following your shoot, you will be emailed a link to a private, secure online proofing site where you can review your images. The link can be shared with friends and family if you want a second opinion. All photos can be downloaded directly from the proofing site.

Unsure if you want to take the professional headshots plunge? DatingHeadshots offers a guarantee to ease your nerves. If you are unhappy with the technical quality of your photos, or there is a technical issue like poor lighting or improperly focused shots, the company will either re-shoot the photos at no extra cost or offer a full refund.

Professional photos could be the boost you need to take your online dating profile to the next level. Please check out our Dating Photo Service category for other options.

Every online dater has been there: stuck in an endless exchange of messages. When the end finally comes, it almost always happens one of two ways.

Option one: you meet in person, realize you're not at all compatible, and are furious about how much time you wasted on pointless messages. Option two: you never even get to that point. Someone just ghosts and the conversation is over by default.

Rarely does it end with option three: you meet, click instantly, and ride off into the proverbial sunset together

A new dating app is hoping to spare you some of that trouble. Whim promises to cut to the chase and set up actual dates - with "no endless texting" and "no flakes or fakes."

The process is exactly as simple as it sounds. Users create profiles and then specify which days they're free to go on a date. The date can be any night of the current week or a recurring weekly evening. After that, users browse profiles and indicate who they are interested in meeting.

When two users express interest in each other, Whim automatically sets up a time and place for the date, based on your availability and preferences (a user who doesn't drink, for example, won't be sent to a bar). Users can message each other about logistics, but it isn't required.

OkCupid alum Eve Peters started the venture two years ago. She told TechCrunch that Whim “surveyed the users of online dating apps and found that matches resulted in dates less than 10 percent of the time.” In contrast, matches on Whim resulted in dates more than 90 percent of the time.

The idea has its perks. Whim requires only a small time investment, which is increasingly important to users. It also guarantees that, when someone matches with you, they're actually looking to go on a date. A right swipe is a meaningful action on Whim and users have to think more seriously before they do it.

The idea also has its downsides. Those who are concerned with safety may not take to Whim's insta-date premise. For them, messaging before a meeting is an important part of the getting-to-know-you process – a filter for creeps, weirdo's, and other undesirables.

To counteract those concerns, Whim's dates all take place in public places. Peters also says the service relies on “high human touch” to ensure safety. All profiles are read by Whim team members, and users are encouraged to give post-date feedback so anyone objectionable can be removed.

The service is currently free and available only in the San Francisco Bay Area. Peters said she plans to charge $10 a month and launch in a second city by the end of the year. You can download the iOS app here. An Android version is expected in 2016.