Facebook will push voting by mail in its new ‘hub’

One of the most valuable pieces of real estate on the internet will soon promote voting by mail to a broad audience of up to 70 percent of U.S. adults over the next 81 days.

As part of Facebook’s new “voter information hub,” the world’s biggest social network will prompt users in states that allow mail-in ballots with reminders and links about registration deadlines, ballot request deadlines and how to submit a ballot.

The hub is Facebook’s latest push to expand access to voting information ahead of the November election. Election Day is Nov. 3, but mail-in voting and early voting will be possible weeks sooner.

Facebook has already set a goal of registering over 4 million new voters. Although the hub will be its own self-contained landing page on Facebook, the company will feature prompts and reminders at the top of Facebook and Instagram feeds to highlight key deadlines, including for voting by mail.

Facebook has often shied away from any confrontation with President Donald Trump over his rhetoric and use of the platform, but the promotion of voting by mail is likely to set up a clash with the president. Trump condemns voting by mail, labeling it as corrupt.

“It really was not a political decision, to be honest,” said Emily Dalton Smith, the head of social impact at Facebook. “Supporting vote by mail is really about making sure that people have the information and tools they need to participate in elections, make their voices heard, hold our leaders accountable.”

Last week, Snap, the company behind the popular social media app Snapchat, announced that it would begin a major effort early next month to register first-time voters within its app and to guide them through the ballot process.

Twitter is also planning new tools, policies and voting resources over the next month to help users find information on how to vote during the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump frequently uses his Facebook page, on which he has 28.7 million followers, to attack voting by mail. The posts have not been taken down by Facebook, but the site recently started to add a link to “get official voting info” below such posts, which will now link to voting by mail facts or other information in the voter hub.