USA TODAY International Edition
Political apps are all the rage in Trump era
Spikes in usage help heighten activism
SAN FRANCISCO President Trump isn’t the only one venting on politics online.
More than 60 mobile apps on politics — from Presidential Actions to Quartz News — have surfaced since Trump’s election three months ago, spanning the ideological spectrum.
In between, a swarm of apps such as Countable, VoteSpotter, Political Actions, Congress, Presidential Election & Electoral College Map, Boycott Trump Biz, Hear my Voice, We The People, and Voice Political Advocacy have experienced bumps in downloads.
Spikes in usage of the apps around Election Day, the inauguration and breaking news such as the Women’s March and immigration ban highlight heightened political activism on social media, says Danielle Levitas, senior vice president of research at App Annie, which tracks the app economy.
As of Feb. 17, 321 out of 2.1 million apps on the iOS App Store contained a form of the word “politic,” an increase of 5% since the election.
On Google Play, it was 422 out of 3.1 million apps, up 12% in the same time period, according to research by App Annie done for USA TODAY.
Mainstream political apps for CNN and The New York Times also surged, App Annie says.
Countable, one of the largest political apps, has flourished since the election. It was installed 273,000 times on iOS through Jan. 31, bringing its total audience to 623,000.
“With the shadow of the election looming, and half of Americans who feel they are not represented, this is an outlet,” says Bart Myers, CEO of Countable, a news app since 2014 that covers legislation and ways to reach out to lawmakers.
While Trump has communicated directly with nearly 25 million followers on Twitter, both political sides are deploying apps to cover breaking news, poll voters, help organize rallies and closely watch legislators, Levitas and others say.
“There has been a huge increase in holding elected officials accountable,” says Andrew Koehlinger, project director for VoteSpotter, a 3- year- old app whose membership has risen more than 10% to 100,000 since November.