Electoral Competition in the Age of Social Media: The Role of Social Media Influencers

Abstract

<p><a>Social media is increasingly becoming a central force in informing the public about a variety of issues. On these platforms, social media influencers have been playing an important role in shaping public opinions through their posts. On political issues, these influencers exert an impact on citizens’ views and, in turn, on their voting behavior. Anticipating this influence during election campaigns, parties potentially need to change how they devise policies. Media outlets also face more competition for readership with citizens’ extensive use of social media, potentially prompting these outlets to adjust their news coverage. Using a game theoretical model of electoral competition involving four key stakeholders—citizens, political parties, media outlets, and social media influencers—we analyze the impact of social media on parties’ policies, media outlets’ news reports, and citizens’ opinions. We show that with social media, parties’ policy positions become more moderate while media outlets’ editorial positions become more extreme. We also identify a critical condition under which citizens’ opinions becomes more polarized.</a></p>