BBC Homepage
  • Skip to content
  • Accessibility Help
  • Your account
  • Notifications
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • More menu
More menu
Search BBC
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
Close menu
BBC News
Menu
  • Home
  • InDepth
  • Israel-Gaza war
  • War in Ukraine
  • Climate
  • UK
  • World
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Culture
More
  • Tech
  • Science
  • Health
  • Family & Education
  • In Pictures
  • Newsbeat
  • BBC Verify
  • Disability
  • Trending

#BBCtrending: Why does Facebook want you to vote?

  • Published
    22 May 2014
Share page
About sharing
A screengrab of the Facebook "I'm a Voter" buttonImage source, Facebook
BBC Trending
What's popular and why

Have you voted in the European elections? A private question you might think - but Facebook has other ideas.

If you're in the UK or the Netherlands then chances are you may have seen - or be about to see - a message appear in your Facebook news feed. It reminds you that it's election day, and has a link to where you can find your local polling station. It also tells you which of your friends have hit the "I'm a Voter" button on Facebook, to show they've voted.

The feature was first tested in the US in 2008. When it was used in the 2012 US presidential election, more than nine million people hit the "I'm a Voter" button. Four million people in India declared themselves voters on Facebook in the recent election. The feature has now been extended globally and will be used in all countries voting in the European Parliament elections. It will also appear in the Scottish referendum on independence in September, and in elections this year in Brazil, South Korea, New Zealand, Colombia, Indonesia, and Sweden.

Interestingly, research suggests the feature may actually increase the turnout in elections by a small, but statistically significant, percentage. A study, external published in Nature looking at 2010 congressional elections in the US concluded that 340,000 extra people voted as a result. The biggest influencer was not the message itself, but the impact of seeing close friends who had clicked the "I'm a Voter" button.

But would why Facebook want to encourage people to vote? "It's a no-brainer," says Bernie Hogan, a research fellow at the Oxford Internet Institute. "The question is why wouldn't Facebook want to do this - it's good press for them." Facebook is keen to present itself as a force for good in the world, says Hogan, and more than any other social network, is particularly suited to people to sharing the things that shape their image or identity - including politics. Facebook says elections were the second most popular topic of discussion on the site globally last year, after the Pope.

Encouraging voter turnout and political discussion may not be the only motive for Facebook. Just as when it recently launched the relationship "ask" button, the "I'm a Voter" feature will provide the company with valuable data which it could - in theory - sell on to marketers, says Hogan.

In the UK, the "I'm a Voter" button is on the mobile edition of Facebook only. Of course, the feature doesn't say who you - or your friends - have voted for.

Reporting by Cordelia Hebblethwaite, external

Have you subscribed the BBC Trending podcast? You can do so here, external via iTunes or here

All our stories are at BBC.com/trending

Top stories

  • Live. 

    Israeli security cabinet approves Gaza City takeover as UK's Starmer calls escalation 'wrong'

    • 10286 viewing10k viewing
  • Courts service 'covered up' IT bug that caused evidence to go missing

    • Published
      5 hours ago
  • Boy, 4, dies after being hit by bus as he walked out of hospital

    • Published
      28 minutes ago

More to explore

  • Cacio e pepe: Good Food pasta recipe sparks fury in Italy

    pasta in a bowl with cheese and pepper
  • Big Mags: The paedophile-hunting granny who built a heroin empire

    Mags Haney outside her home in the Raploch talking to two police officers. The photo from the mid 1990s shows Haney with short bleached blond hair and big earrings. She is wearing a pink cardigan and and orange t-shirt. A number of locals are standing around watching the scene
  • Faisal Islam: Why has the Bank of England cut rates?

    Andrew Bailey, Bank of England governor, looks straight at the camera. he's wearing glasses and a dark suit.
  • India's immigration raids send ripples through slums and skyscrapers alike

    A woman stands in a slum in Delhi
  • Watch: See where China plans to put its controversial mega-embassy

    A composite image of Damian Grammaticas and the proposed China embassy
  • Weekly quiz: Which baby names took top spot?

    A stock photo shows a baby looking directly at the camera while pouting as they prop their head up on an outdoor chair with bokeh depth of field behind.
  • Who is most likely to challenge Liverpool this season?

    • Attribution
      Sport
    Liverpool celebrate with Premier League trophy
  • Why Trump-Putin talks unlikely to bring rapid end to Ukraine war

    A composite image of Donald Trump on the left and Vladimir Putin on the right. Both men are wearing suits.
  • Summer Essential: Your family’s guide to the summer, delivered to your inbox every Tuesday

    concentric circles ranging from orange to yellow to represent the sun, with a blue sky background
loading elsewhere stories

Most read

  1. 1

    Boy, 4, dies after being hit by bus as he walked out of hospital

  2. 2

    MP mistakes charity rowers for 'illegal migrants'

  3. 3

    Mushroom murderer tried to kill husband with pasta, cookies and curry, court was told

  4. 4

    Britons booking 'later, closer, shorter' UK breaks

  5. 5

    Courts service 'covered up' IT bug that caused evidence to go missing

  6. 6

    Is Perrier as pure as it claims? The bottled water scandal gripping France

  7. 7

    Cacio e pepe: Good Food pasta recipe sparks fury in Italy

  8. 8

    Big Mags: The paedophile-hunting granny who built a heroin empire

  9. 9

    Suspected people smuggling arrest after BBC probe

  10. 10

    A walk-in fishermen's clinic saved Tom from sepsis - and could transform the NHS

BBC News Services

  • On your mobile
  • On smart speakers
  • Get news alerts
  • Contact BBC News

Destination X

  • Your latest reality TV obsession has landed on iPlayer

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Destination X
  • Rob Brydon welcomes you to Destination X

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Destination X
  • Get on board and play along at home

    • Attribution
      Game
    Destination X Game
  • Where the X are they off to next?

    • Attribution
      iPlayer
    Destination X
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Weather
  • iPlayer
  • Sounds
  • Bitesize
  • CBBC
  • CBeebies
  • Food
  • Terms of Use
  • About the BBC
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookies
  • Accessibility Help
  • Parental Guidance
  • Contact the BBC
  • Make an editorial complaint
  • BBC emails for you

Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.