Pete Buttigieg: Evaluating Pete for America's Official Campaign Website

By Jessica Rebarber

https://peteforamerica.com/

Pete Buttigieg is a self-proclaimed “left-handed Maltese-American-Episcopalian-gay-millennial-war veteran” who has built his campaign around the idea of “generational change.” Pete is in the fight of his life in the 2020 presidential race. I thought it would be interesting to see how his official campaign website reflects his unique characteristics and is being utilized during this intense final stretch. 

An official campaign website is an ideal online platform for providing supporters with a wealth of vital information. Upon first entering the site, you are greeted with a pop-up message asking if you can chip in and help raise $13 million by March 3rd to help Pete stay competitive. A banner at the top of the homepage reiterates this same message, clearly emphasizing that the homepage’s primary call to action is asking for donations. 

But after scrolling down, the homepage becomes filled with a variety of calls to action. The website clearly outlines a wide range of options for how people can support and contribute. This includes road-tripping, hosting or attending events, talking to voters, helping with grassroots fundraising, and following Pete’s campaign efforts on social media. This is a great example of encouraging both entrepreneurial and institutional engagement. It gives people options with varying levels of commitment, so people can select which option aligns best with their participatory style. Offering multiple means of taking action is especially appropriate, considering that individuals vary in their willingness to contribute. Road tripping may better align with an enthusiast while following Pete’s social media accounts may have a stronger appeal for a minimalist.

As a platform that is easy to find and return to, the campaign website – especially the homepage – is an excellent location to embed an excess of calls to action. The site is not continuously updated. Rather, it is a solid base to house extensive details on how people can take action. Presenting a multitude of ways that people can contribute conveys that any type of action is valuable to help support Pete’s race to the finish.

Site visitors are also greeted with the following quote: “This is our shot to galvanize an American majority to defeat this president and send Trumpism into the dustbin of history.” This builds community among supporters by incorporating collective efficacy appeals and vilifying Trump. While there are a few efforts to build community throughout the website, there is a stronger emphasis on promoting Pete’s personal story and particular leadership traits. There is an entire page dedicated to explaining Pete’s life story, including how being a veteran is an ideal presidential characteristic. This page clearly uses the story of self technique. 

After further examining the website’s contents, the language and visual content do not seem to target a particular cohort. Instead, it takes a more general approach by targeting a variety of demographics. For instance, veterans, minorities, and low-income families are just a few of the target audiences that Pete seems to be focusing on within the “Issues” tab on his website menu.

The Supporter Toolkit is another page listed on the menu. It is a particularly innovative element of the website that provides an extensive arsenal of free materials that supporters can use in any way they deem useful. Pete gives his supporters creative freedom when it comes to using the Supporter Toolkit. In this example of entrepreneurial engagement, the Supporter Toolkit offers a variety of marketing materials to help supporters “DIY representations of support.” Supporters can download anything from phone wallpapers to his Spotify playlists. This distinct and unique website feature sets his website apart from the other candidates.

However, the website is missing digital elements that are essential for engaging a younger audience. Considering that Pete is a Millennial, I would expect his campaign website to be more in-tune with the digital side of campaigning. There are a few ways in which people can support Pete digitally, such as following him on social media. But the digital elements are buried. The website should prominently feature various ways to support his campaign digitally to entice younger people to support his campaign. While Pete’s campaign website does incorporate engaging content to reach and mobilize supporters, there is definitely room for improvement.