The goal of FollowTheVote is to make political issues simpler, more factual, and fun through innovation. Our first step in achieving this mission was to develop a Voting Advice Application for the German elections in 2021.
Our tool in a nutshell!
Our app did not focus on what parties promise in their election programs, but what has happened in the last four years, i.e. in one legislative period in the parliament. Who voted on which topic, how, and for what reasons? Our goal was to make it easier to follow the vote (get it ?). In doing so, we hoped to increase, transparency and understanding of politics from an innovative angle.
Who is behind the scenes?
From Generation Z for Generation Z. Our team mostly contains young volunteers (19 – 27 years old) that are interested in politics and want to share their passion. In addition, we have a technical developer who makes sure that the app is working and improving.
No costs, no advertising, what is the catch?
The project was mostly done through voluntary work. Since this summer we have been part of the Unlock Accelerator program from Wikimedia Germany and the UpdateDeutschland implementation program, which supported us technically and financially. We also have found our own NGO, the Political Innovation Association (PIA. e.V.). This allows us to receive donations, keep our independence and keep ads out of the tool.
Sounds all good and sweet but... did anyone use it?!
Hell yeah! I think the numbers speak for themselves. During the election, we helped more than 25.000 Germans. We think this is pretty impressive for a first-year experiment of some crazy young people.
