Senate Island gives Senate candidates a ‘Love Island’ makeover

Apparently, having a type extends to tax policy as well.

Welcome to Senate Island, where finding a connection means comparing healthcare plans and the next recoupling happens at the polls. The parody website, inspired by the hit reality show Love Island, gives Senate candidates the reality-dating-show treatment, inviting visitors to size up their political connections before casting a ballot in the 2026 midterms. The states are villas, the candidates are islanders, and finding a match involves comparing views on healthcare and housing.

Created by Chicago-based art director and designer Anweih Cox, the site launched Oct. 26 and has since attracted more than 80,000 visitors and half a million page views, according to The 19th. (Cox had initially hoped for 1,000 page views.) It also, naturally, went viral on socials.

The inspiration came from watching Love Island USA and thinking about the enthusiasm fans bring to voting on the show’s app, Cox said. If people could get that invested in a recoupling, perhaps the format could make researching an election feel a little more approachable.

How does Senate Island work?

Visitors begin by choosing their state, or “villa,” then meeting the candidates hoping to couple up with voters. In Texas, for example, the lineup includes James Talarico, Ken Paxton, and Ted Brown, presented in swipeable profile cards with their names, ages, and AI-generated portraits. (Apparently, the villa dress code is a button-down and khakis.)

From there, the “Casa Amor” tab takes visitors to a side-by-side comparison of candidates’ positions on education, healthcare, housing, AI, and the cost of living. In our Texas walkthrough, selecting education brought up Talarico’s opposition to using public school funding to subsidize private schools alongside Paxton’s support for universal school choice. The summaries keep the dating-show language going, with Talarico’s entry describing that funding arrangement as a “dealbreaker.”

Credit: Screenshot: Senate Island

The policy summaries borrow the language of dating profiles. For example, Florida Democrat Angie Nixon’s cost-of-living entry opens with an invitation to swipe right in response to frustration with price gouging, while Republican Ashley Moody’s entry frames tax proposals as a love language.

After choosing a candidate, visitors reach voting resources, including links to check registration, find a polling place, and learn more about their ballot. (Choosing someone on the website doesn’t cast an actual vote.)

“It’s important because a lot of times people feel very intimidated,” Cox told The 19th. “You have to go through all these different sites sometimes just to hunt down the information you’re looking for, and so just having that starting resource that is on the more playful side just makes it feel less intimidating.”

The project has reached someone very familiar with running a villa. Love Island USA host Ariana Madix commented on Cox’s TikTok, writing, “you are brilliant.”

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