Political debates can be a minefield. That’s why calm political debates are something we all aspire to but rarely get. The anonymity of Reddit and its subcommunities (subreddits) gives you the power of choice. You can engage in polite debate on politics on the right subreddit or choose to leave if opinions get heated.
The 6th most popular website in the world helps you take in different opinions, examine your biases, and form a balanced opinion.
Most Reddit users are young and the political debates on Reddit are uncensored but moderated, unlike the news media that can be biased (though there are unbiased news websites too). So, it’s a useful outlet to find out what your peers are thinking.
Here are some of the best political subreddits you can take part in.
1. Politics
Despite the generic name, this subreddit is only for U.S. politics. The catch-all subreddit follows political events across the U.S. and those often spark discussion threads. Several AMA (Ask Me Anything) sessions are held around the year and you can join these to put your own views across or ask questions.
Do remember to read the rules and the FAQ before you take part in the subreddit. Trolling, personal attacks, and fundraising attempts can invite bans.
If you are in the U.K, visit UK Politics which is a similar subreddit. There is a World Politics subreddit as well, with more than a million redditors.
2. PoliticalDiscussion
This subreddit also leans a lot towards U.S. politics but not exclusively. You can discuss and debate anything on the subject. For instance, you can go into political history and ask about Woodrow Wilson during the Spanish Flu or debate on the political theory of ideal governance.
Use the Search by Topic filter on the Reddit sidebar to filter the right threads.
3. Geopolitics: Getting the Big Picture
The name and the subreddit description say it all. This subreddit looks at the link between geography and political gamesmanship. By its very nature the scope of the discussions is global. Most of the conversations are around recent headlines.
Use the colorful filters to get a sense of world history as it is happening now. The Perspective and the Analysis filters can give you a sense of international politics. You can also ask your own questions and see what kind of debate unfolds in the threads.
4. Freethought
This subreddit champions rationality over dogma, reason over emotion, and tries to encourage a more scientific discourse. Politics is one of the more popular topics with this community. Like many subreddits, the discussions start from published articles.
Not all comments pass the scientific and logical filters, but that’s something you must accept while pursuing free thought.
5. Change My View
This subreddit is for you if you can accept that you might be wrong. Change My View is about changing the lens of your worldview or at least cleaning the blurriness on it. It also links to the Ceasefire website that wants to make a small attempt to reduce global polarization.
The more than a million members on this subreddit is enough proof of the idea. Start by posting your opinion. Explain the reasoning behind your view. Then, have a polite exchange of ideas and see if you can come out at the other end with better understanding or more ideas.
6. Moderate Politics
This political subreddit isn’t for political moderates as the name might imply. It’s for expressing moderately held views about politics. So, there’s a good chance that you can start a calm political debate that doesn’t get heated. Choose Debate from the Flair sidebar and have a go at it.
Redditors of all backgrounds are welcome here if you agree to disagree… calmly.
7. Neutral Politics
Objective discussions are always the key to calm political debates. It’s tough to keep an entire community aligned on those goals. That’s why this subreddit is heavily moderated and stresses on quantified knowledge from respected sources, and not “common knowledge” which is often rife with falsehoods.
Though the debate is done, you can still use the 2020 First US Presidential Debate Real Time Fact Checking Thread to check up on the claims made by the two nominees.
8. AskPolitics
There are quite a few “Ask” subreddits for thought provoking questions and answers. AskPolitics is about improving your own political knowledge. The right question (and its reply) can go a long way in making you a more responsible voter and a better debater when a topic comes up in a conversation.
The questions you ask can be basic like, “Where I can find the GOP healthcare plan?” or weighty like, ”How has ranked choice voting gone in reality?”. The subreddit also collates similar issues into megathreads that make them easier to grasp.
All discussions are well moderated, and the admins encourage you to post well-thought out specific questions and not general prompts for the sake of starting any discussion.
How to Find the Right Subreddit for Political Debates
There are many ways to search Reddit like a power user.
Apart from a Boolean search, you can ask Reddit. The Find a Subreddit is like the post office for the site too. Or use the search suggestions on the official and unofficial Reddit apps.
Here’s a compiled list of political subreddits that works like a short cut. Give a hat tip to u/rawveggies for this.
Civility on Reddit Goes a Long Way
Reddit, like any other social media community, is not free from turning into a soapbox. The fact that people can anonymously share their opinions can make any chat a ranting match. You have to expect this, as sites like Reddit play an increasing role in shaping political opinion.
The best way to find subreddits for calm political debates is to avoid those with negative language. They can belong to either the left or the right. The next best way is to follow every rule of Reddit etiquette and avoid getting into flame wars. Remember, it doesn’t take much for an admin or a moderator to shadowban you from subreddits in one go.
Have you found the best political subreddit for your political questions? Tell us if any other subreddit deserves to be on this list and why.