“Reddit, this is important,” President Barack Obama wrote on Reddit this evening, around 5:30 p.m. eastern time. Here was the president’s message:
I want to thank you all again for the reception you gave me in August for my AMA. Good questions. Definitely not bad. I’m checking in because polls will start closing in this election in just a few hours, and I need you to vote. Millions of Americans have stepped up in support of this campaign over the last 19 months, and today we decide what the next four years look like – but only if we show up. I ask that you go out there and cast your vote, whatever your political persuasion. You can confirm your polling location here: https://www.barackobama.com/lookup
If you’ve voted already, don’t stop there – spread the word to your friends, roommates, and neighbors. Think of it as upvoting.
On the one hand, props are due to the Obama campaign for its familiarity with Reddit memes and its recognition of the site’s power as a source of Internet action. (Obama took to Reddit earlier in the campaign for a question-and-answer session, or AMA in Redditese.)
On the other hand, this was 5:30 p.m. on election night, and these people were on Reddit. I’m sure thousands of them are going to leap up from their laptops, start calling all their friends, Google-Map their precinct location, and race out there—just as soon as they check out this latest cat meme … and this other cat photo. .. and … oh crap, what time do the polls close again?
