AOC and ‘Among Us’? Inside the strange “go vote” Twitch collab

The skyrocketing fame of Among Us has no bounds. The sensational social deduction game has reached far & wide – even intriguing U.S. politicians! Congresswoman Aexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) took to Twitter to express her interest in playing Among Us.  

Knowing how much popularity has come to the game, Ocasio-Cortez knew that the game might be a fantastic way to encourage people to vote. With excited responses from popular streamers such as Pokimane, Disguised Toast, and HasanAbi, Ocasio-Cortez was raring to go live and stream the game on Twitch. 

Anyone want to play Among Us with me on Twitch to get out the vote? (I’ve never played but it looks like a lot of fun)

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) October 19, 2020

Making her Twitch debut on October 20, AOC quickly drew a crowd, peaking at a whopping 435,000 viewers during her first match. According to metrics site TwitchTracker, these high numbers put her on par with the twenty biggest streamers ever. 

AOC managed to rope in Representative Ilhan Omar to join the crew of A-list Twitch streamers. Here’s how the stellar Twitch collab pulled off such a thrilling Among Us stream with AOC. 

Pulling it together

Pretty new to the gaming scene, AOC managed to have an exciting broadcast that lasted over three hours. Major streamers were instantly on board to welcome her to their little Among Us club. Pokimane, HasanAbi, Disguised Toast, DrLupo, Moist Critical, and more were charmed by the spirited congresswoman.

AOC’s stream even implemented prepared graphics with the help of an eager team of supporters who started making the art right after she tweeted. Ocasio-Cortez has been active on Twitch once before for a fundraiser stream, but it wasn’t until now that she launched her own Twitch channel. She now has 545,000 followers and received over 4.5 million views. 

AOC: "I can't kill Poki, Poki's so nice"

Seconds later: pic.twitter.com/SzCOqRRKFn

— Tim Young (@shindags) October 21, 2020

Killing for the vote

Just as she had feared, she became the impostor right off the bat. Staring off with a savage murder, AOC accidentally reported her own kill but was able to play it cool without acting sus. Feigning ignorance, AOC did an amazing job lying to the room of experienced streamers. Though she was a newbie impostor she still took out half the players with a partner before getting thrown off the ship.  

AOC proved to be a great crewmember later on too. Confidently voting off players who she thinks are sus, AOC exclaimed, “I’m voting early!” The comment inspired a cheeky reminder for eligible voters to get out there and cast their ballots before time is up. 

During her stream, AOC directed people to IWillVote.com, a Democratic party website. “That’s really what tonight’s all about, and of course we are here to vote blue,” she said to a room with an enthusiastic chat.

Politicians reaching out

Though AOC’s impromptu Among Us stream was certainly unexpected, it’s not the first time that politicians have reached out to gaming communities to spread their message. The Biden campaign debuted an Animal Crossing island just last week. Senator Bernie Sanders hopped on Twitch last year to reach a “potentially supportive audience that we may not be hitting other ways.”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez proves that you don’t have to be a gaming expert to give a game a try or to stream your game. She was a natural at Among Us and could definitely go for a career as a streamer if the whole congresswoman thing isn’t doing it for her. 😉 (But seriously, please do both AOC!)