New grassroots campaign for young Tories has had a disastrous week on the internet, losing control of its social media accounts

It’s the grassroots political movement whose launch nobody could envy. Now, social media channels for Activate, the centre-right attempt to emulate Momentum’s youth appeal, appear to be at war with each other over backing for Jacob Rees-Mogg to be Britain’s next prime minister.

On Twitter, the @ActivateBritain account has tweeted a string of anti-Theresa May images and issued an “official statement” endorsing the MP for North East Somerset as the next Conservative leader.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest @ActivateBritain tweet claiming the group backs Rees-Mogg for PM. Photograph: Twitter/@ActivateBritain

A tweet on the @ActivateBritain account mocking Theresa May. Photograph: Twitter/@ActivateBritain

They’ve even compared Rees-Mogg to Superman.

@ActivateBritain compare Jacob Rees-Mogg to Superman. Photograph: Twitter/@ActivateBritain

Not that the replies on social media have always seen Rees-Mogg as a Clark Kent figure.

The Watermelon (@thewatermelon3) I'd have said this was nearer the mark... pic.twitter.com/YDYH5997id

However, all is not as it appears. Prior to these tweets appearing, Activate had tweeted that it had been subjected to a hacking attempt.

Tweet from @ActivateBritain claiming a hacking attempt. Photograph: Twitter/@ActivateBritain

The group’s Facebook page posted to say that the Twitter account was no longer under its control, and that the posts backing Rees-Mogg were not published by the campaign.

Activate Facebook post claiming its Twitter account has been hacked. Photograph: Facebook/Activate

Asked about the tweets, a spokesperson for the group stated: “Activate backs no individual politician, all claims to such are as a result of a hack on our Twitter account. We first lost access to the account on Thursday but were able to block out the hacker up until yesterday [Monday], when it seems he or she was able to circumvent our measures. We are in contact with both Twitter and the police and are hoping to regain access imminently.”

Back on Twitter, meanwhile, the alleged hackers claimed that they do truly represent Activate and that, in fact, it was a pro-May faction who had hacked and seized the Facebook account. And so they’ve set up their own new Facebook page.

Activate’s Twitter account makes a counter-claim. Photograph: Twitter/@ActivateBritain

Activate’s social media channels are not the only areas where there have been problems since last week’s launch. On its website visitors are able to donate to the group, which claims to be wholly independent of the Conservatives and that it intends to “reclaim the voice of young people in politics, bringing together individuals and groups in our education system, workplaces and communities”.

Initially the website featured a league table of donations, which allowed people to place a name, or message, alongside their donation – including the names of Harold Shipman and Jimmy Savile.

Maeve Shearlaw (@MaeveShearlaw) lol pic.twitter.com/QJxKhqyfmJ

On its website, Activate claims that, it has not yet launched. Visitors to activate.uk.net are greeted with a pop-up saying: “The recent media attention we have received was not courted by us, but was in fact a response to the orchestrated attack on Activate and the individuals who helped form the movement that Activate was born out of.”



Facebook Twitter Pinterest Pop-up on the Activate website claiming the group is yet to launch. Photograph: Activate website

The attack referred to was a leak to the Guido Fawkes website of screenshots from a WhatsApp group, where young activists were making jokes about “gassing chavs”. Activate has disassociated itself from the comments, stating: “None of the people included in those messages currently have any seniority with the organisation. We are working on ensuring that the people in question are removed from the group as a whole, if still members.”

Guido Fawkes (@GuidoFawkes) Young Tories Joke About 'Gassing Chavs' in Activate WhatsApp Group: https://t.co/7qRRv66xQb pic.twitter.com/xCrYypBnQC

The group’s initial foray into social media was widely derided for crudely including hashtags such as #retweet and #meme within their messages, something being mocked by the people in control of the account.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest End panel of an @ActivateBritain video featuring the hashtag #Retweet. Photograph: Twitter/@ActivateBritain

Activate initially tweeted as @Activate_uk_net, then changed its username to @ActivateBritain. This immediately allowed a parody account to squat on the old name, which was still being linked to by the group’s official website.



Activate UK (@Activate_uk_net) We think this #funny cat is probably saying "Vote @Conservatives!" Hahaha! Such fun #retweet #cat #thisisacat pic.twitter.com/mdu8vRIUBY

Other imitators popped up on social media with deliberately badly executed campaign images.

Gammon Youth (@GammonYouth) Pls RT to raise awareness of a low tax, low regulation free market economy. #Conservatives #BoldGrabForTheCentreGround #puppers pic.twitter.com/QKrpbz8M66

The entire launch appears to have been so badly managed that it’s still possible to believe that the whole thing has simply been an elaborate prank.

Fred Gallucci 🌹 (@GallucciFred) Is this the real account or a parody? pic.twitter.com/aHVDVUDmOo

Or perhaps a logic test.