New Delhi, April 7 -- India is in the midst of two significant persuasion exercises. On one hand, the country's health authorities are persuading people to get vaccinated to manage the covid pandemic. On the other, even while it rages, political parties in five states are trying to persuade voters to vote for their candidates in the ongoing assembly elections. It is worth comparing these persuasion strategies.

On the surface, an election persuasion process encompasses large election rallies, posters and public announcements. But on a closer look, one will realize that election campaigns are brilliant examples of micro-level persuasion strategies. All the major political parties have household-level data on voters. All important decisions...