No abstract

The role of network interactions is significantly increasing with rapid development and deep penetration into all spheres of the modern society of information and communication technologies. The network structures represented by social networks that are increasingly built into modern political processes. Network communities take a form of public policy, where a public opinion is formed and political decisions are made. The network environment gives not only new opportunities for civic participation, opposition, and protest movements, but also under certain conditions for control over public policy.The tendency towards an electoral activity decline is one of the most acute problems in the sphere of political relations. This trend can be seen in most democracies. The models of economic and political behavior are changing due to development of information society. On the one hand, citizens spend more and more time in social networks, plunging into virtual reality, moving away from the problems of social reality or the first-order reality. On the other hand, social networks create new social bonds which exist on the basis of certain social relationships (such as kinship, friendship, neighborly and professional ones, etc.) characterized by a high level of trust and solidarity.The article shows the problem of using Internet memes in electoral fight for votes. This trend has recently revealed itself and it represents a new tendency in modern politics. The article briefly outlines the main ideas of the theory of memes and distinguishes the practices of using memes in modern politics.