Creators Are Now Winning Elections: Here’s Why
1 April 2025 | Written by Parker Floris
Imagine starring in a television series where you accidentally become the president of your country, to only then actually do so a few years later. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s story has been told endlessly. But what we are seeing today is a shift of creators doing the same—moving into politics attempting to not only oust decades-old incumbents, but also get GenZ hopeful about and participating in politics again.
“You may not fuck with politics, but politics will fuck with you” – Philip DeFranco
What you need to know
In 2021, we saw British YouTubers Max Fosh and Niko Omilana run in the London Mayoral election. Despite Niko, renowned prankster, running a joke campaign—he won nearly 50,000 votes making him the most successful independent candidate of the entire election, outcompeting those with considerable financial backing.
In 2024, we saw Fidias Panayiotou, a 24-year-old Greek Cypriot YouTuber win an independent seat in the European Parliament with the third most votes in the entire country. Despite acknowledging he had zero political experience—he built his campaign off representing young people through change and transparency in the political process. While he learns how the European Union works, so does his audience.
(We have previously reached out to Fidias and his team for an interview, with no response—If you have any way to connect us, that would be greatly appreciated)
This is hardly an exhausted list. Finance YouTuber Kevin Paffrath (Meet Kevin) ran to replace the current California governor, and every week new GenZ representatives from around the world are presenting their journey and mission online as incoming representatives demanding change.
YT: Fidias | How I Won the European Election
What is happening
The topic of creators in politics has risen again in the news cycle as 26-year-old political commentator and creator Kat Abughazaleh announced her candidacy for the Illinois 9th district. She has encapsulated the discontent of young progressives who see the current leadership destroying living standards and undermining fundamental human rights, with the Democratic establishment doing nothing to stop them.
“I say it’s time to drop the excuses and grow a fucking spine”
“The majority [of Democrats] work from an outdated playbook. We need a makeover which means we need a vision that’s bigger than what we’ve been told is possible”
When reviewing her key policy priorities, it is clear just how far behind her district is—when even conservative parties of allied western nations instituted her goals decades ago.
Kat has already made enemies in high places, claiming that Elon Musk’s lawyers deposed her regarding tweets she made towards him. So much for the champion of free speech.
“I’m not scared of standing up to these people. I know how they think, and I know how to beat them.”
After fighting conservative propaganda and pundits for years at Media Matters for America and with her own content, she is used to the usual rhetoric thrown at her.
“The Chicago GOP is just going really full mask off racism” – Kat’s response on MSNBC in regards to a GOP’s comments about her, regarding her support for Palestine.
She highlights in her launch video how she would rather spend her campaign money on “book drives and clothing exchanges and public events than fancy fundraisers for rich doners”—a popular and successful strategy of progressive political groups in the past—but with a modern twist. She vowed to and has already started posting regular updates about her running in an attempt to keep her “campaign as transparent as possible”.
The entry fee for her first public event was the donation of female sanitary products.
Within the first 7hrs of her announcement, her campaign raised over $100,000, and they reached $200,000 by the end of the day.
Twitter: Kat Abughazaleh
Why this matters
In an era where younger generations are being left behind—poorer than any in history, facing an impending climate crisis and the rise of fascism—it is no surprise that Millennials and GenZ, now often the biggest block of voters, are looking for change.
The difference today is the access we have to the candidates, and their ability to operate outside of corporate and political establishments of the past. By utilising social media to convey their message, candidates like Kat are able to connect with their constituents on a much deeper and cheaper level than their competition. No need to waste money on overpriced tv ads in an election cycle.
We are also seeing candidates embrace their reality.
Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (New York 14th District) was a broke waitress before unexpectedly winning her race. She utilises social media often to interact with voters and their concerns—relating closely to their struggles.
Niko, Max and Fidias are jesters who wanted to get more of their generation involved in politics—even if that meant mocking the process, then highlighting an alternate path to connecting with voters.
Creators are more accessible, relatable and unfiltered than their political predecessors. Unafraid to look silly, unapologetically committed to their beliefs and un-reliant on the traditional media gatekeepers of the past. They know how to tell a story and build a community behind a journey, while clear on who they are fighting for and who are they fighting against. They are not afraid to use rhetoric that connects with young people and call out racism, trans and homophobia, fascism, corruption and science-denial.
There is often a concept used in politics to describe how voters select their representative—’could I have a beer with them?’. This is exactly what creators capitalise on. Connections and communities they have built over years that then expand as theirs audience brings their friends and family along for the ride.
Where this is heading
For the foreseeable future, it is likely that creators will be the future of politics—even if it is just having a talented team who knows how to convey the message, like we discussed with Bernie Sanders.
Traditional news broadcasters will remain—but the option to engage with video-on-demand podcasts and interviews on platforms like YouTube, in a casual and long form sit down setting will allow politicians to form deeper connections with their constituents and have deeper discussions about the topics at hand, and how to solve them. This is in contrast to the 15 second media bites candidates are allotted on traditional television.
This hopefully will force a change in the establishment as they begin losing their seats to the new guard.
Twitch streamer and political commentator Hasan Piker with Bernie Sanders and AOC
What this means for you
Young people aren’t apathetic, they are being left out of the conversation.
As you see representatives start to arise and run campaigns focussing on the structural issues that are currently impoverishing society—pay attention, support, and tell your friends and family.
The worst thing we can have in society is apathy.
If you see no one making a change in your district, maybe that is a sign for you to get involved and be the change you see in the world. Kat said that she had no intention in running before moving to Chicago, and only 50 days before launching did she actually decide to do so.
This decade is a turning point for politics as media technologies and power structures that dominated the 20th and early 21st century subside. While issues still remain regarding the oligarchical ownership of social media platforms—that is a discussion for another article.
In short—creators are shaping the future of politics and are connecting with young people like never seen before—utilising technologies overlooked by many legacy parties and representatives. So, while they are caught on the back foot, this is the time for change and for us to support congress people and members of parliament that actually represent us and our interests, not just their wealthy donors.
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