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Download the “Influencing the 118th Congress” Report

Insights • September 13, 2023

Rational 360 leveraged social media data to uncover which individuals and organizations that are the most followed on social media by the 118th Congress (2023-2025). By mapping online influence over these decision makers, Rational 360 has new insight into the connections between media and power in the nation’s capital.

The analysis answers questions such as: 

• What news outlets and journalists do policymakers pay most attention to?
• Which political party has more influence on its Members in Congress?
• Who in Hollywood is the most listened to by policymakers?
• How can opinion leaders and communications professionals use influencers to shift policymaker perceptions?

Our Process for Identifying Top Influencers on Each Political Party in the 118th Congress

Step 1: Build & Sort

Rational 360 identified both official and personal social media handles of each member of the 118th Congress (2023-2025) across both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate.

Step 2: Identify & Quantify

Rational 360 identified which voices Members of Congress follow most.

• Influencers – People with the most Congress Members following them.
• Influence Score – The number of Members of Congress following an Influencer.

Step 3: Categorize & Analyze

Rational 360 organized Influencers into six buckets. A qualitative analysis of top-ranked voices in each category reveals insights into who is influencing the 118th Congress.

• Media Figures
• News Outlets
• Political Figures
• Policy Influencers
• Policy Organizations
• Non-Policy Influencers

This document will detail key findings and map out paths for how your business or organization can influence power in the nation’s capital.