There are many, many, many social media platforms available to candidates. From reviewing the homepages of often-discussed candidates running for President, campaigns are including links to Facebook, Instagram (owned by Facebook), and Twitter on their political campaign website's main homepage, most often in the footer area.

PlatformUsage by AmericansFacebook169.5 million people
More than half the US population Instagram104.7 million people
31.8% of the US population Twitter55.2 million people
16.8% of the US populationData from eMarketer

Senators Michael Bennet and Amy Klobuchar each include a single tweet on their homepages. On Senator Michael Bennet's site, the tweet overlays a graphic of the candidate while a tweet sits atop a pale green background on Senator Amy Klobuchar's site.

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's homepage includes a prompt to join her list for campaign updates by text. The pink Twitter icon accompanying the text does not seem to be tied to the call-to-action: Clicking the icon does not open a window for tweeting the call-to-action nor does clicking the icon open a new window with a relevant tweet.

The pink 2020 icon is an unrelated surprise "Easter egg".

Known for using Twitter as a primary communications channel, President Donald J. Trump's site includes four tweets.

President Donald J. Trump's campaign site is not the only one to include multiple tweets. Representative Seth Moulton's presidential campaign website includes multiple tweets flanked by Instagram posts and a call to follow the campaign on popular social media platforms. Unlike other candidates, Representative Seth Moulton's site does not include social media links in the homepage's header or footer area.

Examples of specific calls to follow a campaign on social media can be found on other sites too. Former Mayor Julián Castro's campaign site includes a "Follow Us" block near the bottom of his homepage, while former Representative John Delaney includes a "Connect" area. While not specifically asking people to follow, former Governor John Hickenlooper includes social profile links in 3 places: in the main hero area of his site, as a separator between donation and newsletter sign-up blocks, and again in the footer.

A "Find Us on Instagram" call-to-action above a scrollable Instagram feed can be seen on author Marianne Williamson's campaign site.

Tweets and Instagram posts are only two types of content being inserted into campaign websites.

Candidates are also nesting YouTube videos on their homepages. Nearly 3/4 of US adults use YouTube, a social media platform owned by Google. Of the candidates reviewed, 17 embedded YouTube videos on their homepages from their official profiles. Of the 17, the majority of surveyed candidates included at least one link to the official campaign YouTube profile somewhere on the page.

Campaigns' failing to include direct links to official social media profiles creates an opportunity for interested parties to accidentally land on profiles operated by individuals not associated with the campaigns. In some cases, the profiles could be fan pages operated by strong supporters of the candidate. The reverse is also possible: Arriving on profiles created by detractors. Of note, two candidates -- former Representative Beto O’Rourke and Senator Bernie Sanders -- do not provide links to any social media profiles being used by the campaigns on their homepages.

Methodology

On July 23-24 and July 28-29, the homepages of over 25 candidates for President were visited using a desktop computer. The browser's cache was repeatedly cleared while reviewing the campaign websites. Unless specified otherwise, snapshot images included in this article were taken on July 23.

Observations

• Candidates including social media links in header area:
• On left
• Businessperson Tom Steyer
• On right
• Former Vice President Joe Biden
• Mayor Bill de Blasio
• Former Mayor Julián Castro
• Mayor Wayne Messam
• Candidates including social media links in footer area:
• On left
• Mayor Pete Buttigieg
• Senator Kamala Harris
• Senator Amy Klobuchar
• On right
• Mayor Bill de Blasio
• Senator Cory Booker
• Former Mayor Julián Castro
• Former Representative John Delaney
• Representative Tulsi Gabbard
• Former Governor John Hickenlooper
• Representative Tim Ryan
• Former Representative Joe Sestak
• President Donald J. Trump
• Senator Elizabeth Warren
• Former Governor Bill Weld
• Author Marianne Williamson
• Centered
• Senator Michael Bennet
• Former Vice President Joe Biden
• Governor Steve Bullock
• Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
• Former Senator Mike Gravel
• Governor Jay Inslee
• Businessperson Tom Steyer
• Businessperson Andrew Yang
• Candidates not including social media links on the homepage
• Former Representative Beto O’Rourke
• Senator Bernie Sanders
• Candidates including YouTube videos on homepage:
• Senator Michael Bennet
• Senator Cory Booker
• Governor Steve Bullock
• Mayor Pete Buttigieg
• Former Representative John Delaney
• Representative Tulsi Gabbard
• Former Governor John Hickenlooper
• Governor Jay Inslee
• Senator Amy Klobuchar
• Mayor Wayne Messam
• Representative Seth Moulton
• Representative Tim Ryan
• Businessperson Tom Steyer
• President Donald J. Trump
• Senator Elizabeth Warren
• Former Governor Bill Weld
• Businessperson Andrew Yang
• NOTES: Mayor Julián Castro looks to have a video on his main page, but it is a static image. Author Marianne Williamson does include video, but the examined clips were not from her YouTube channel.
• Candidates including Vimeo videos on homepage:
• Former Representative Joe Sestak
• Candidates including Flickr:
• Senator Cory Booker
• Senator Elizabeth Warren
• Candidates including LinkedIn:
• Representative Seth Moulton
• Candidates including Snapchat:
• Governor Steve Bullock
• Candidates including Spotify lists:
• Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
• Senator Kamala Harris

This post looks at how 2020 Presidential candidates include social media on campaign website homepages. Below are examples from the official websites of Democrats and Republicans running for President.

Individuals Running for the Democratic Nomination

Senator Michael Bennet

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://facebook.com/BennetForColoradoFlickrInstagram https://instagram.com/michaelbennetLinkedInMediumhttps://medium.com/@michaelbennetSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/michaelbennetYouTubehttps://youtube.com/c/MichaelBennet2020

Former Vice President Joe Biden

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/joebidenFlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/joebidenLinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/joebidenYouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/joebiden

Mayor Bill de Blasio

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/bill.deblasioFlickrInstagram LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/BilldeBlasioYouTube

Senator Cory Booker

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/corybookerFlickrhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/corybooker Instagram https://www.instagram.com/corybookerLinkedInMediumhttps://medium.com/@corybookerSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/CoryBookerYouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/user/CoryBookerdotcom

Governor Steve Bullock

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttp://facebook.com/GovernorBullock FlickrInstagram http://instagram.com/GovernorBullockLinkedInMediumhttp://medium.com/@stevebullockSnapchathttp://snapchat.com/add/GovernorBullockSpotifyTwitterhttp://twitter.com/GovernorBullockYouTubehttp://youtube.com/channel/UCr4cyFlFJw14YrQ_IqNQBqQ

Mayor Pete Buttigieg

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/petebuttigieg1 FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/pete.buttigieg LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/PeteButtigieg YouTube

Former Mayor Julián Castro

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebook https://www.facebook.com/julianforthefutureFlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/juliancastrotx LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/juliancastro YouTube

Former Representative John Delaney

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/johnkdelaneyjkd FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/johndelaney LinkedInMediumhttps://medium.com/@JohnDelaneyJKD SnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://www.twitter.com/johndelaney YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCc7fDpVPrm9B9e-ChkXdVtA

Representative Tulsi Gabbard

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://facebook.com/tulsigabbard FlickrInstagram https://instagram.com/tulsigabbard LinkedInMediumhttps://medium.com/@TulsiGabbard SnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/tulsigabbard YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/tulsigabbard

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/KirstenGillibrand FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/kirstengillibrand LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/user/xiqp723sgft3dosx8b0izgd2s?si=GK4333dgTQqopEaD4qB7xg Twitterhttps://twitter.com/SenGillibrand YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/kirstengillibrand

Former Senator Mike Gravel

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/mikegravel2020 FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/mikegravel2020LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/MikeGravel YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UC95fKRwnEvd8RTX74Iz3TcAThe social profiles listed are as of 07/29/2019.

Senator Kamala Harris

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/KamalaHarris FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/kamalaharris LinkedInMediumhttps://medium.com/@KamalaHarris SnapchatSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/user/kamalaharris?si=d4bA19tHRhmBDU0y2fLemw Twitterhttps://twitter.com/KamalaHarris YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0XBsJpPhOLg0k4x9ZwrWzw

Former Governor John Hickenlooper

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/JohnHickenlooper FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/johnhickenlooper LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/hickenlooper YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UC82O0Byp_ny13O0LkO1UpUg

Governor Jay Inslee

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.jayinslee.com/facebook FlickrInstagram https://www.jayinslee.com/instagram LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://www.jayinslee.com/twitter YouTube

Senator Amy Klobuchar

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttp://facebook.com/amyklobuchar FlickrInstagram http://instagram.com/amyklobuchar LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttp://twitter.com/amyklobuchar YouTubehttp://youtube.com/AmyForAmerica

Mayor Wayne Messam

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/WayneForAmericaFlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/waynemessamLinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://www.twitter.com/waynemessamYouTube

Representative Seth Moulton

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/SethMoulton FlickrInstagram https://instagram.com/sethmoultonLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/sethmoultonMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/sethmoulton YouTubehttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IwlD6tGj-oQ

Former Representative Beto O'Rourke

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookFlickrInstagram LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterYouTube

Representative Tim Ryan

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/timryanforamerica FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/timryanforamerica LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/timryan YouTube

Senator Bernie Sanders

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookFlickrInstagram LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterYouTube

Former Representative Joe Sestak

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/joesestakFlickrInstagram LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttp://twitter.com/joesestakYouTube

Businessperson Tom Steyer

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/officialtomsteyerFlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/tomsteyerLinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/tomsteyerYouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpYi4-Hlcxaxink1nx5UgQA

Senator Elizabeth Warren

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ElizabethWarren Flickrhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/elizabethwarren Instagram https://www.instagram.com/elizabethwarren LinkedInMediumhttps://medium.com/@teamwarren SnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/ewarren YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrj-0FxK19tgUR2EbHkBBGg/videos

Author Marianne Williamson

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/williamsonmarianne FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/mariannewilliamson LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/marwilliamson YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXAMXGAP0YnBxtc8brSSbjg

Businessperson Andrew Yang

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/andrewyang2020 FlickrInstagram https://instagram.com/andrewyang2020 LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/andrewyang YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCriIuQZpMi6gEt_2P7xKCww?disable_polymer=true

Individuals Running for the Republican Nomination

President Donald J. Trump

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/DonaldTrump FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/teamtrumpofficial LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttps://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAql2DyGU2un1Ei2nMYsqOA

Former Governor Bill Weld

Social Media PlatformCandidate ProfileFacebookhttps://facebook.com/GovBillWeld FlickrInstagram https://www.instagram.com/govbillweld LinkedInMediumSnapchatSpotifyTwitterhttp://twitter.com/govbillweld YouTube