After This Election: What Next?: Digital Footprints and Their Role in New Politics

Talia Cutler ’27

Executive Opinion Editor

We’ve all done embarrassing things. You tripped in Mather and the entire soccer team saw. You forgot to say “I’m good, how are you” to the post office worker and now you look like a jerk. Maybe your friend recorded it. Everything you post (as well as everything that has been posted about you) is collected into a trove called a digital footprint. These are about to change campaign culture as we know it. 

The dawn of the digital age has irrevocably transformed the political landscape. No longer are politicians confined to the traditional mediums of speeches and soundbites; their every action, word, and even fleeting thought is now subject to the scrutiny of the internet. I worry that in an age where politician’s every move is dissected, digital footprints will become a weapon that transforms the new generation of politics.

Older generations are exempt from this weaponry for the most part because their formative years were spent without widespread access to information-sharing technology. Thus, digital footprints are almost exclusively an issue of the younger echelon. The ubiquitous nature of technology in our lives (over 90% of youth today are on social media) leads to a culture where every move is recorded and available for consumption. Thus, you have little control over what is shared and what isn’t. 

When will we begin to dissect presidential candidates’ middle school TikTok accounts, scanning for any sign of a questionable reposted video or embarrassing cosplay phase? At what point will CNN and Fox News be pouring over a leaked finsta? This trend is unfair and unproductive, as everyone makes mistakes and grows over time. Let this be a warning: This over-analyzation of politicians as people rather than politicians is a recipe for disaster. 

“But why,” asks the chronically online undergrad, “why can’t I ask that my representatives are perfect people on par with the Dali Lama? I want a recount!” There has been a lot of discourse in the past few years on digital footprints as they intertwine with internet cancel culture. 

My philosophy is simple: I don’t listen to Kanye for his political opinions, I listen because he makes good music. Similarly, I do not judge politicians based on their personal lives and choices, but based on their policies and actions in the political realm. I wish this were a more common thought process, but we live in an age where people are judged holistically, and when they lack in any area, it is a reflection of complete failure. 

I would like to make clear that I am not talking about unbridled online bigotry – and yes, a resurfaced racist tweet is indicative that someone may not be fit to run a diverse country. I am referring to impractical judgments on someone’s ability to do their job formed off of baseless personal evidence. We are already beginning to see this unfold: Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance’s tagged Facebook photos were dug up, with one “controversial” post surfacing of a man appearing to be Vance “passed out in a corner.” Show of hands, bantams, does this sound a little familiar to some of you? Regardless of your opinions on Vance, I don’t believe passing out in a corner inherently means you are unfit to run a country. Instead, he should be judged on the legislation he has passed and his legacy as a Senator. 

However, it is important to note that digital footprints can be applicable to that realm as well. Vance’s re-discovered Venmo transactions linked him to Amalia Halikias, who is a director at the conservative think tank that brought about the controversial political plan Project 2025. You know, the one that Trump is quoted as saying he has “nothing to do with.” 

This is how technology should be utilized in elections – holding candidates accountable and catching potential lies. Anything other than that, simply put, is dirty and unprofessional. Qualifications should always take precedence over personal activity online, especially as people grow and change over time but leave relics of their youth on social media. It is important to remember that your future senator is your age — perhaps even a hapless poli-sci major at Trincoll. They are going fratting, posting weird stuff on Instagram, and ChatGPT-ing their stats assignments. No one is perfect — we have all done things we are not proud of. Unearthing digital footprints to reflect on someone’s whole character is a losing game. The “perfect candidate” you will spend eons combing for does not exist. We will find in the coming decades that digital footprints are a ridiculous standard that will become prevalent in the coming political elections as we move on to younger candidates. The political pedestal should be a thing of the past. If this article is making you consider deleting your finsta, maybe it’s a sign — I hope to see none of you on the ballot in 2040!