Build the Vote

Building the next generation of voters in Minecraft

While on the rise, youth voter turnout in the U.S. is still lower than the turnout of older Americans. For many of them, voting for the first time is too complicated. According to many experts, this isn’t due to apathy, but to a lack of education on how the voting process works. With that in mind and with the 2020 U.S. presidential election looming, we partnered with Rock the Vote — a non-partisan non-profit dedicated to building the political power of young people — to launch Build the Vote, an educational voting experience that helps first-time voters and future voters learn more about the electoral process in a world they know and understand: Minecraft.

Gamifying the electoral process

Build the Vote is a custom Minecraft world in which players are invited to go through the same steps U.S. voters go through in real life, from registering to casting a ballot, but in a Minecraft way. The largely popular video game provided an ideal environment for Rock the Vote to engage and educate its young audience in a more compelling and fun way across multiple devices and platforms.

A custom ballot and polling place

A Capitol-like building was created inside this virtual world to host the entire experience. Young people could experience the voting process by progressing through the various steps of this educational journey. Throughout their experience, they were instructed on the importance of making their own political decisions by voting not on Trump vs. Biden, but on the 10 most important issues at the core of the actual election, ranging from healthcare access to racial equality.

Having their voices heard

On November 2, the day before the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Rock the Vote and partners released the results of the Build the Vote polls and shared them on their social platforms to let America know what young Americans wanted for the future of their country.

Results

The initiative received a strong response: 362M impressions, an 85% conversion rate, and over 100 news articles worldwide. As a result, Rock the Vote will make Build the Vote part of their yearly Democracy Class education program in the U.S. The owners of Minecraft — Microsoft — are also looking into making the experience a permanent education tool for classrooms around the world.