Work

Activating without Transforming: The Use of Technology to Engage Activists in Political Campaigns

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: ABSTRACT We analyze how new technologies can be used to foster individual engagement that limits deliberation and reduces people’s capacity for political action within parties. We present the results of an analysis of the case of the Argentinean Propuesta Republicana (PRO). Using data from in-depth interviews with key actors—party elites and political consultants—we show that new technologies helped to mobilize almost 1 million volunteers in presidential elections, without transforming them into party stakeholders. This incorporation, though successful for organization and mobilization, reinforced the existing distribution of power within the party, by activating new adherents without engaging them in a collective organizational structure.

Source: Latin American Politics and Society

DOI: 10.1017/lap.2025.6

Authors: Rafael Piñeiro-Rodríguez, Fernando Rosenblatt, Gabriel Vommaro

Institutions: Universidad Católica del Uruguay, University of Manchester, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, National University of General San Martín, Universidad Nacional de San Martín

Language: English

Topic: Social Media and Politics

Subfield: Communication

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,550