That’s one way to spread the message (Picture: Raafaye Ali)

You’ve probably seen all the reminders to register to vote (deadline is tonight, get registering, people). But one man is spreading the message via somewhat unorthodox means – dating apps.

Independent advertising agency employee Raafaye Ali is targeting Muslim women on dating apps such as Minder and Bumble to remind them to register.

The 29-year-old has been sliding into the DMs of different people on various apps to make sure this demographic doesn’t miss out.

And where he is met with voter apathy, Raafaye has tried to present facts and stats to get his matches to think otherwise.


The West Londoner feels it’s especially important for Muslim women to vote and engage in politics if they aren’t already as their absence can have serious consequences.



‘I was concerned about the fact there were large Muslim communities who can make a huge difference,’ Raafaye explained to Metro.co.uk

‘The idea came about because I wondered how can you reach people outside of your bubble, who are far more willing to have a real conversation.

‘I work in the creative industry where there aren’t many ethnic minorities so the likelihood of me connecting with Muslims to talk about politics is unlikely.

‘I thought how could I connect with my community and get them to consider voting?’

And thus the dating app idea was born.

Raafaye has been campaigning for the Labour party on dating apps (Picture: Raafaye Ali)

He added that apathetic citizens may not be aware of how political their daily lives are, citing that we’re born through accessible healthcare, have access to education and so on.

Talking to the Muslim platform Amaliah, Raafaye added that he has ways to make politics appealing to the otherwise indifferent.

‘The ones who say they aren’t political I just try to make it as relatable as possible, show how it fundamentally shapes so many aspects of their life to hopefully make them reconsider how they do have opinions and those opinions are worthy.

He wanted to reach people outside of his immediate circle (Picture: Raafaye Ali)

‘I do a lot of editorial illustration which is about explaining something through a visual image to make it ready to talk about, terminology and jargon really switches people off so it’s so important to make sure it’s accessible and why not on a dating app where you naturally more likely to talk to someone rather than a stranger on the tube.’

So unless you want Raafaye to slide into your DMs, don’t forget to register to vote.

MORE: You have until midnight to register to vote in the General Election 2019

MORE: How Muslims date in the age of Minder

MORE: Muslim men explain why it’s difficult to find a partner to marry

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