Social Media and Election Campaign: Tiktok As 2022 Malaysian General Election Battleground

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Social Media and Election Campaign: Tiktok As 2022 Malaysian General

Election Battleground
Thesis · August 2023
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SOCIAL MEDIA AND ELECTION CAMPAIGN: TIKTOK AS 2022 MALAYSIAN
GENERAL ELECTION BATTLEGROUND
A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Political Science International Islamic

University Malaysia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Master of
Political Science
Nurul Azmira Binti Abdullah (G2014716)
Semester 2 2022/2023
TIKTOK AS 2022 MALAYSIAN GENERAL ELECTION BATTLEGROUND
Acknowledgement
All the praises be to Allah (SWT), the Cherisher and Sustainer for granting me with
health, strength, patience and knowledge to complete my thesis. My upmost appreciation goes
to my supervisor, Dr Amelia Yuliana Binti Abd Wahab for her continuous support, inspiration,
encouragement, valuable time and guidance in the final phase of my work. Without her sincere
help and kindness, I would not have made it.
I am also thankful to Dr Tunku Mohar Tunku Mohd Mokhtar for his intellectual
inspiration and for inspiring my interest in Malaysian politics which was previously absent
from my research interest dictionary. Also, my thanks go to Dr Danial Bin Mohd Yusof and
Dr Zainal Abidin Bin Sanusi who have helped me a lot in critically viewing Malaysian politics
and politics in the world. I would like to take the opportunity to express my thanks to the
academic as well as to the non-academic staff and students from Department of Political
Science IIUM, who were involved directly or indirectly in the data collection stage of my
research.
Last but not least, I would like to dedicate this thesis to my family members. I owe a
debt of gratitude to them for their financial assistance and emotional support. May all our
efforts receive the blessings from Allah SWT, and may the knowledge acquired be of benefits
to IIUM and the community of practice.
1
Abstract
As the time goes by, political campaign and marketing have entered social media
quickly. In this era, people are more interested in accessing social media than conventional
media. In Malaysia, changing of trend in political participation and communication has now
aggressively been done through social media. Within these dynamic user interactions, lies to
the potential for extending the agenda setting function of the social media, specifically TikTok.
On top of that also lies the TikTok’s ability to influence the politicians’ victory in the election.
Three research questions are laid out, first, what makes TikTok a significant medium
and tool for political campaigns in the Malaysian 15th General Election? Second, how TikTok
is used by the politicians in the 2022 Malaysian General Election? And finally, what are the
implications of using TikTok for election campaigns and strategies? These questions are
answered in the chapters through the utilization of the qualitative method and guided by the
agenda setting theory.
The finding suggests that, with enough strategy, social media could erase the
incumbency advantage and bring Malaysian politics back to its grass roots. The increase of
political participation through social media in Malaysia witnessed trend of more integrated
social media tool usage which need to be taken as important tool in monitoring and winning
the society in Malaysia politics game plan.
Keywords: Social Media, TikTok, Election campaign, Malaysia.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
Acknowledgement 1
Abstract 2
Table of contents 3-4
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study 5-6
1.2 Statement of Problem 7-8
1.3 Significance of the Study 9
1.4 Research Questions 10
1.5 Research Objectives 10
CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 The Use of Social Media for Disseminating and Election 11
Information
2.2 Social Media and Political Agenda 12-13
2.3 Social Media and Its Impact 13-15
2.4 TikTok as a Medium for Political Campaign 15-17
2.5 Theoretical Framework 17-20
3
CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research Design 21
3.2 Sampling Method 21
3.3 Data Collection 22
3.4 Data Analysis 22
CHAPTER 4 ANALYSIS
4.1 TikTok as a Medium for Electoral Campaign 23-25
4.2 Election Campaign Activities during Malaysia’s 15th 25-26
General Election on TikTok
4.3 TikTok and the 2022 Malaysian General Election 26-31
4.4 Limitations of the Study 31
CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION 32
REFERENCES 33-36
4
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
One of the leading indicators that a country practices democracy is that it allows its
citizens to vote for their leaders. Therefore, a democratic country should allow public
information during an electoral campaign free-flowing and should be fair and balanced to all
party members. Democracy should center its media informing the public about different
political information, and millions must have access to it free of cost. The use of new media,
particularly utilizing the internet during the campaign, becomes very impactful to candidates
because usage of it is very affordable. Conforming to the new era and advanced technology,
time has evolved. With the rise of technological advancements, communication and flow of
information has never been this possible. Manual election was utilized before, but now it has
been automated and electoral campaigns are brought to a wider and higher coverage utilizing
different social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and the latest TikTok.
Social media differs from mainstream media in terms of form and function, and they
bring about different effects on the voters’ interest, knowledge, engagement, and turnout in
elections. Social media was found to help the voters understand parties’ policy positions, and
engagement with social media made them more likely to vote (Kaminska et.al. 2017). In the
social media campaign environment, it has been suggested that the campaign is more candidate
driven as opposed to issue-driven. Politicians have been directly exposed to people with rather
specific demographic characteristics and political interests (Diaz et.al. 2016). Candidates might
therefore tailor their communication to the sociotechnical environments of platforms.
Social media platforms have generally been moving in the direction of more and better
video content. This trend has been in place for some time. Video is increasingly the dominant
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feature of social media platforms, signaling a trend away from written, photographic, even
memetic content. TikTok, a platform which is exclusively video content, has emerged as a key
platform for younger voters and therefore for social media innovation. In Malaysia, TikTok
was central to the 15th General Election campaign. Political parties were willing to invest more
funds and labor in social media campaigning than ever before. A previous study by Milieu
Insight found that TikTok is one of the platforms that Gen Z turn to for political or election
matters. In addition, The Media, Communications and Multimedia Commission says 95
percent of Malaysians now own smartphones, which means they have the ability to watch,
record and share videos.
Social media presence in Malaysian politics is more prominent at the individual
politician than at the party level. Some younger Malaysian politicians, such as Nurul Izzah,
Khairy Jamaluddin, and Syed Saddiq, have amassed millions of social media followers on a
range of platforms. They have become adept at producing videos on these platforms, thereby
increasing their popularity and engagement. The voting age being lowered to 18, the lingering
nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, the potential for floods, and the short election campaigning
period, were all factors leading candidates and parties to fund campaign staffers to attempt new
innovations in video content for GE15.
This paper examines the importance of social media in Malaysia and the social media
presence of politicians in the country. This paper will also discuss how a properly formulated
social media strategy can help win an election and explore how video campaigning shaped
Malaysia’s election and particularly focus on Tiktok application. Social media by itself cannot
win an election, but with properly packaged messages that can reach a specific segment of
voters, social media can effectively help a candidate or party to victory.
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1.2 Statement of Problem
Social media is proving to be a critical channel through which we develop a perception
of the wider world and its concerns. Digital natives are no longer the exception, but are
becoming the norm, making the internet a key asset in spreading information, raising funds,
exchanging views and mobilizing the masses to act. It is this prevalence of such technology
that may fuel more social revolutions to come, particularly in the arena of politics and
democracy.
Malaysia is no stranger to social media and the internet. With a smartphone penetration
of roughly 76 percent and official data showing that 97 percent of Malaysians are active on
social media, Malaysia is counted amongst the most digitally connected countries in the world.
According to Malaysia’s Election Commission, 41 percent of registered voters for 2018 general
election were between the ages of 21 to 39, placing this demographic perfectly within the
characterisation of digital natives. They get their news primarily through social media, and in
this election, social media clearly shaped their views of prospective parliamentarians and
assemblymen.
New media technologies are central to Malaysia’s general election campaigns.
However, concerns over misinformation and disinformation came hand in hand with the rise
of the platform. As early as 2019, researchers and journalists were warning about the potential
for the platform to facilitate the spread of disinformation or election interference. The general
election also featured some of the more grim aspects of cyber campaigning, including fake
news, bots and digitally altered photographs of political leaders. In GE12 (2008), blogs and
online commentaries allowed for new forms of partisan political discourse. GE13 (2013)
featured social media campaigning via Facebook and Twitter, and the emergence of
‘cybertroopers’ online.
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In 2018’s GE14, the professional organization of WhatsApp messenger content and
groups became crucial to campaign strategies. Pakatan Harapan (or Alliance of Hope) pulled
off a shocking victory in the 14th General Elections, setting in motion the first-ever transfer of
power in the country’s 60 year history. In Malaysia’s recent GE15, video content produced for
social media became the new technology that dominated campaigning. Video material has long
been a feature of Malaysian political discourse, ‘‘sex tape” exposes, for example, have been a
common form of slander against a political candidate. However, GE15 saw the massification,
even democratization, of video campaign content, which shaped the nature of the campaign.
Furthermore, there is a drawback towards media-centered democracy primarily because
of the absence of face to face interactions, which is very important in getting to know political
candidates during elections. From the outset, it was clear that much of the political campaigning
was focused on this internet savvy demographic. Party manifestos were first released online to
thousands of downloads. Their posts attracted thousands of comments and shares every day
leading up to the elections. Malaysian politicians are expanding their engagement platforms
ahead of the general election and using TikTok to reach out to the younger crowd. This push
comes as the minimum voting age has been lowered to 18.
While social media use could cast a wide net, certain target groups could also be left
out due to the limited access to the internet in some areas, as well as the fact that older voters
are less savvy with such tools. Such issues need to be assessed and reviewed if political parties
or politicians really want to campaign online. But even this depends on the ultimate goal,
whether it's on the macro or micro level. Hence, the purpose of this research is to analyze how
social media are used by politicians to dominate the election, particularly on TikTok
application.
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1.3 Significance of the Study
This study is significant to the following stakeholders:
1) Political Science Department
This study seeks to provide supplemental data and information on the importance of social
media presence of politicians especially during the electoral campaign period as well as the
impact of social media as a tool of electoral campaign, which can be utilized for future
discussions and engagements in the department.
2) The voters
This study seeks to know the relevance, impact and challenges of social media as a tool for
electoral campaigns in the hopes of providing narratives, evidences for the voters. This also
informs the Malaysians that they have the right to acquire reliable information as elections
should be fair and clean to uphold democracy. Social media also has a negative side which
consists of misinformation and pulling down other candidates using hoax information. This
should provide an election education to pursue real democracy being the ultimate source of
power in such a form of government and to provide the voters credible information in the
pursuit of democracy. The information can serve as a precaution for the voters who are relying
too much on social media in gathering information.
3) The legislative body
This study seeks to influence policymakers about the challenges of social media as a tool for
electoral campaigns. This may lead to creation of laws to prevent the recurrence of the existing
challenges of utilizing social media as a tool for electoral campaigns that are experienced by
the voters.
4) Future researchers
This study serves as a guide and reference for future researchers who want to study the same
field of study.
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1.4 Research Questions
i. What makes TikTok a significant medium and tool for political campaigns in the Malaysian
15th General Election?
ii. How TikTok is used by the politicians in the 2022 Malaysian General Election?
iii. What are the implications of using TikTok for election campaigns and strategies?
1.5 Research Objectives
i. To study the use of TikTok by politicians for political campaigning during the 2022
Malaysian General Election.
ii. To discover election campaigns activities during Malaysia's 15th General Election on
TikTok.
iii. To examine whether social media can effectively help a candidate or party to victory.
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CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 The Use of Social Media for Disseminating Political and Election Information
Social media has been massively used in political and electoral campaigns and therefore
become an important tool in politics. According to Banaij & Buckingham (2010), by using
traditional media young people cannot find political information predominantly. Because of
that, they used social media as a platform to find information. After all, the voters use social
networking sites to gather information about political organizations and candidates.
Social media plays a critical role in elections where political information is exchanged
and distributed massively. In the 2008 US campaign, it has been highlighted as an innovation
in the field of political communication (Medvic, 2011). Obama’s campaign was recognized as
a prominent innovator in the use of information and communication technologies entirely. This
is the first national campaign that used new media technologies and the internet besides
overshadowing the traditional media. Through that election, many political organization
lessons learnt as they understood the significance of social media in communication strategies
recently.
The use of social media in the political environment, not only gives impact to the
political organization and candidates but also the public. This is because of the impact of social
media on political organizations and candidates, they can directly communicate and interact
with the public in two ways communication. While the public as voters, they use social media
as a platform to share their opinion and to be heard. As a result, specifically social media can
be regarded as a potential platform to engage in politics to attract voters.
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2.2 Social Media and Political Agenda
The very nature of social media which makes creating and sharing news so easy,
coupled with its viral nature facilitate political news sharing and any news for that matter very
fast with a wider reach. Bimber (2003) powerfully demonstrates that the Internet has greatly
reduced the entry costs for campaigners wanting to influence the political process. As such,
there is a weakening of established political parties and an opening up of politics to those adept
at website design and driven by a commitment to change.
Agenda setting these days is not necessarily from the authorities or ruling elites, not
from gatekeepers and stakeholders of news corporations. We are experiencing what some
termed as public agenda whereby the opinion of the public is at a central stage and discussion,
especially political discussion, is centered around the opinion of the public via the social media
(social media in particular). The conventional media is no longer having full control on agenda
setting over the masses. This is due to the pervasiveness of social media which provides access
to the masses and makes it easier for anyone to create and share news. Hence, social media is
losing its grip as far as agenda setting is concerned, especially political agenda.
Social media has been at the forefront of setting the political agenda. News reported or
shared via the social media have become the talking point of the day and this made some
observers to believe that the social media is no longer an alternative media as it used to be, but
rather mainstream media by way of making news headlines. This is obvious in the way social
media is used to share political news among the public.
The development and ascendancy of the Internet as an informational medium has
altered the information environment in which political elites and interested citizens function
(Woodly, 2008). In Malaysia, for example, the internet has become an alternative information
source to mainstream media which is viewed as being pro-establishment. This was evident in
the run-up to Malaysia's March 2008 General Elections (GE) where the internet became a key
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political battleground for the first time as the use of ICT came into full bloom with the
opposition parties using the medium more than the Government parties to make inroads and
win several states.
This development was largely attributed to the influence of social media, which the
opposition used to its advantage to spread its political agenda and to garner support from voters.
Many observers have noted that the mushrooming of social media prior to the 2008 elections
has had a tremendous impact, especially upon the young voters (Ramanathan, 2008). In 2013,
the landscape was very different as both the ruling party and opposition have made inroads in
their use of social media. BN, for instance, had made strong inroads onto social media and had
carved itself a competitive position.
The usage of social media had increased and become wide as both parties and party
leaders had joined Facebook and Twitter. The public who are also voters tend to get political
news from social media in addition to sharing information which are vital for political parties
and politicians. Hence, the public agenda was seen to be prominent and crucial for political
success.
2.3 Social Media and Its Impact
As the world is moving into an age of unique interrelation, it can be seen that the
movement of information is able to go at uniformly extraordinary speeds among huge
populations. This has caused serious consequences on the political progression and social
media such as Facebook, Twitter, and Tiktok among others have a function to ensure that
formal processes as in the general election are improved and not interrupted. Due to that, new
media especially social media plays an important part in distributing information and
involvement of the public.
Leong (2015) stated that democratization in Malaysia has improved significantly as
citizens bypassed challenging forms of political organization and review of government
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authorities via social media. The age group that depends strongly on social media for
information and news are young voters between the ages of 18 to 29, whereas the older citizens
remain to favor traditional media. Nadiah & Maheran (2019) also emphasized that social media
is able to sustain the level of democratization in Malaysia by offering citizens the opportunities
to practice their liberty in the social media to voice out their thoughts and opinions freely in
Facebook and Instagram. Nevertheless, they highlighted that democratization would take time
as a result of the political culture in Malaysia.
According to Shiratudin et al (2016), the young voters which is also described as
Generation Y, devoted most of their young lives growing up with technological advancement
and have a deep-rooted relationship with technology and recognized its various functions.
Masiha, Habiba, Abbas, Saud & Ariadi (2018) revealed the fact that the access of the internet
alone does not define people’s political participation, but exposure to political information on
social media may expand the people’s political involvement. Furthermore, they also examined
how social media platforms can promote political engagement as they lower the barriers for
free expression of ideas.
Additionally, these types of social media also enable its users to engage in any
movement without consuming much time and energy as in just ‘liking’, ‘joining’, or ‘reposting’
numerous political information. As stated by Zheng (2015) political institutes believe that the
active engagement in political communication by utilizing social media is important, especially
at the time of the campaign period. Numerous politicians make use of social media to
communicate with their voters and have dialogue with them (Hong & Nadler, 2011). Not long
ago, Facebook and Twitter apps as in WhatsApp also acted as an essential role in political
involvement (Salman & Saad, 2015). It should be remarked that mediums such as Twitter and
Facebook provide the power to not only publicize common information but also shape political
ideas via their networks.
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The research by Zheng (2015) explains that all adopted the value of continuous
collecting, observing, analyzing, summarizing, and visualizing political material in the world
of social media with the goals of enhancing relations for politicians and voters. As an example,
a crucial element is to recognize political opinion leaders, who are also described as influencers
and sustain the stream of the discussion taking place among their followers, particularly in
times of election campaigns. Possible matters of interest or inclination among voters can be
discovered by tracing developing issues and trends. This would eventually lead to the
expansion of a structure that is capable of providing direct and comprehensive reviews which
covers all social networking sites by combining and imagining the outcomes either via regular
and steady journalism that offers the information in real-time (Wok & Mohamed, 2017).
Focusing on the benefits of new media on political progression, social media permits
people to interact with their leaders in a means that did not occur in the past, for example by
delivering a direct line of communication with their leaders on a public online platform. Voters
can raise their opinions and their problems as well as can push their representatives to watch
over public demand and interest (Leong, 2015). Moreover, citizens or voters have the access
to a broad range of information and knowledge permitting them to make reasonable judgments
on candidates and policies (Satterfield, 2016). Hence, social media performed a main role in
the life of Malaysian people, as well as in the facets of politics. The political landscape
improved in Malaysia as a result of the robust existence of social media.
2.4 Tiktok as a Medium for Political Campaign
TikTok is one of the most downloaded applications by millions of people around the
world today. TikTok is a social network and music video platform that originated in China
(Pandela & Riadi, 2020). The short video uploaded which has a maximum duration of only 3
minutes contains various kinds of content uploaded by users or creators, from content about
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beauty, lifestyle, history, education, art, comedy, to preaching. The rapid development of the
TikTok application from year to year is very significant.
These are several reasons why TikTok has become popular. According to Yang, et al
(2019), because:
Video duration. Short videos and songs have a closeness to reality in modern society
because users need more information that is short and dense so that users don’t get bored easily.
Social media users can enjoy the videos they want because of the algorithm by which social
media will present the content that users are interested in. This is also the reason why TikTok
is suitable as a medium of preaching (Wang, 2020).
Video Features. Easy to make and deploy quickly. Compared to longer videos, short
videos are easier for viewers to accept and easier for video creators to make. The ease of use
of this feature can be put to good use for preaching.
Latest Trend Update Content. TikTok users are mostly the younger generation. They
want to stay updated on something that is trending/viral. Content that is currently still a trend
is beauty, fashion, sports and music.
Influence effect. The more celebrities and influencers use the TikTok application, the
more people who follow it. A lot of people from celebrities to ordinary people have TikTok
accounts at the moment. Users usually re-upload their videos on TikTok to others social media
accounts. The magnitude of the influence on the use of TikTok and the ease with which the
content is spread make this social media a medium for preaching (Hasiholan, et al, 2020).
User Freedom. The TikTok application provides freedom for its users to express
themselves. This is in accordance with communication theory which helps people to express
themselves to others. This makes TikTok which incidentally is a suitable communication media
as well as a preaching media.
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Based on those characteristics, TikTok is regarded as a suitable media for election
campaigns. This is the main reason why it is a significant medium for election campaigns
because it can reach all levels of its users. This shows that Tik Tok has a big influence on the
dissemination of information, both positive information that can increase knowledge and
negative information (Awalinda & Fitri, 2022). In using Tik Tok there are two influencing
factors, namely internal factors such as feelings, individual characteristics, desires or
expectations, attention, learning processes, physical conditions, needs, interests and
motivations. While external factors such as information obtained, knowledge and needs around,
intensity, size, opposites, and things that are new and familiar or unfamiliar to an object (Deddy,
2009).
Based on the psychological perspective, the entertainment that contains fun and novelty
on TikTok was an emotional attraction. Then, TikTok users can enjoy it and feel happy with
the various aesthetic displays. For example, hearing through music background features in
every video and vision at watching video content. Some of the things above are the appeal of
TikTok as a product media with ethical experience that represented taste, status, and insight or
need of social media users (Yu, 2019). Likewise, every human has a variety of preferences.
Therefore, it is possible that various types of inventions and video concepts can appear on
TikTok, including political content.
2.5 Theoretical Framework
This study is guided by Agenda-Setting Theory by McCombs and Shaw. The concept
of agenda setting theory is the transfer of topic salience from the media agenda to the public
agenda. Agenda-setting research originally tested the transfer of topic salience based on the
measure of analysis a topic obtained (media excerpt and repeated display of topics), and derived
to encompass questions of transfer of salience through the way the issue was conferred (media
17
framing of topic facets). Agenda-setting presupposes the media may be successful in affecting
what the public understand about and how the public understand those topics.
The agenda-setting process is significant to examine in the policy governing election
campaigns. In an election campaign situation, agenda-setting has been transformed
substantially since its early research studies by the technology that favors individuals and
organizations to utilize social media to connect straight to an audience and by the campaign
finance system created by the citizens united leading with money that equips for greater
message airing over advertising serving as an agenda-setter. As the communication
environment evolves, individuals and organizations must conform their communication
planning to influence the public. There is an urgency to comprehend the message distribution
system potential and an understanding of the way the audience pursues and restores information.
McCombs and Shaw (1972) states that compared to the previous times, candidates go
before the people over the mass media comparatively than in person. The information in the
mass media turns into the only connection many have with politics. The assurances,
commitments, and rhetoric summarized in news stories, editorials, and columns establish much
of the knowledge consequent to a voting choice that must be made. Majority of what people
perceive comes to them from the mass media or from other people. Even though the
information that mass media intensely differ approaches in a campaign is far from compelling,
the evidence is far more powerful that voters receive the extensive amount of information
available during each campaign. The public, certainly, differs immensely in their scrutiny of
mass media political information. Others, commonly the more educated and most politically
sympathetic and those least likely to switch political positions, earnestly looking for
information, however most imply to gain it, if at all, without much struggle.
Agenda-setting theory accredits a more notable role for issues in voting decisions and
administers a favorable framework to analyze elections. According to Ansolabehere and
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Iyengar, campaign activities have direct and indirect consequences on voters. The use of
advertising campaigns affects voters’ issue inclination as well as candidate evaluation. Shaw
and Roberts (1999), states that campaign affairs also produce new news coverage, wherein it
also persuades voters.
In a new and advanced society wherein innovations are fast increasing, social media
plays a role not just in simple communication or conversation, but it extends towards shaping
and reconstructing the political world. As social media continues to influence the political arena,
it also brings changes towards the electoral campaign. However, as social media continues to
bring positive impacts towards politics, it also brought problems and challenges. As discussed,
there is an existing law in Malaysia aiming for a fair election. Such law enumerates the different
electoral platforms which includes social media. However, it seems to be lacking in the way it
is implemented where certain violations committed are not properly addressed in the law.
Using the agenda-setting theory, the researcher will be studying the significance, impact,
and challenges brought by social media and the theory will help in processing and
understanding the above. The theory will examine how the important topics from the media
agenda is conveyed to the public. As this process is significant in the policy context of election
campaigns, then improvement or crafting of new policies addressing the lapses of the
legislators will take place.
The political arena will see an increasing use of social media in the future, where old
social custom approaches to reaching the masses will no longer be feasible. Social media have
over the years become an influencer and game changer of any political party. Unlike traditional
campaigning, which is mandatorily required to come to a close some hours before the polls,
the election commission cannot put a ban on discourse on social networking websites. Hence,
currently social media should be seen as a lifeline for political parties to achieve their political
19
agenda. Be it twitter, Facebook or blog, politicians can no longer ignore social media in
reaching out to their supporters and the masses at large.
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CHAPTER 3
METHODOLOGY
This chapter contains the methodology which presents research design, the sampling procedure,
the data collection and data analysis.
3.1 Research Design
This study will use a qualitative method approach. It is concerned with election
campaign activities through short videos in TikTok media. The data that were used were
primary and secondary data. Primary data was obtained through online observation from
selected politicians' TikTok accounts. The selected account is based on the number of followers
exceeding 50 000 or the number of likes reached more than 100 000. These criteria are the
primary data source. The secondary data will be collected via literature review related to several
previous research. It has the aim to strengthen the research result. Because this is qualitative
research the result and conclusion of this study were not in general (Soeherman, 2019).
3.2 Sampling Method
The purposive sampling techniques will be applied in this study. The sample selection
in this study used purposive sampling as a special consideration to the result be more accurate
(Sugiyono, 2017). Some special considerations or criteria from the sample politicians' TikTok
accounts became observation objects. The politicians TikTok accounts had video content from
the creativity users itself, second, the accounts that had many numbers of followers also
contained election campaign videos, third, it had a high number of likes, fourth, an active
politician uploaded their video in TikTok within the 14 days 2022 General Election campaign
period which is from 5 November 2022 until 18 November 2022.
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3.3 Data Collection

This research used descriptive qualitative methods. Main data and information about
political campaigns through social media during the 2022 Malaysian General Election will be
collected by online observation, literature research and online data such as media content and
text analysis. The researcher also will use secondary data such as articles from selected journals,
books that focus on social media as well as research reports published by other scholars who
are relevant to the topic under study.
3.4 Data Analysis
To get a sample that fits with the criteria above, the researcher will apply an online
observation on TikTok, then the researcher will do filtering which will be carried out in two
stages. First, filtering the content of interest (applied in the first register account) which chooses
Malaysian politicians that showed in the timeline. Then, automatically the TikTok timeline
only shows an account with the theme of politics with a high number of followers. Second of
all political content displayed, the researcher only chose Malaysian politicians who posted their
election campaign videos or any content that related to the 2022 Malaysian General Election
campaign throughout the 14 days electoral campaign. After filtering, the researcher will choose
12 samples of Malaysian politicians TikTok accounts from different party politics with the total
number of followers being more than 50 000 or total number of likes reaching 100 000. The
number of followers and likes was an indicator of the popularity of the politicians TikTok users.
The higher followers that TikTok users have, then the higher popularity of TikTok. Therefore,
the indicator of like and follower become a consideration of the researcher in choosing the
exact sample to observe.
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CHAPTER 4
ANALYSIS
4.1 TikTok as a Medium for Electoral Campaign
TikTok was turning up to be the main battleground for politicians from all sides of the
aisle to sway young voters ahead of Election Day on 19 November 2022. Politicians are
utilizing TikTok to target the over 1.4 million 18 to 20-years old who were voting for the first
time, in addition to posting on Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp and even blogs.
Candidates who previously did not appear to be adept at using social media are
suddenly starting to share videos of their work frequently on TikTok as the election day of
November 19 draws near. While some leaders actively participate in online discussions and
comments with their supporters and adversaries, others use music, videos, and hashtags to
increase the visibility of their message among Malaysians.
Figure 1: Malaysia’s Politicians TikTok Accounts
Candidate TikTok Account Followers Likes Party
Syed Saddiq @syedsaddiq 928 700 15.9 Malaysia United Democratic

Million Alliance (MUDA)
Khairy @khairykj 538 800 2.6 Barisan Nasional (BN)

Jamaluddin Million
Tengku Zafrul @tzafrul_aziz 374 700 2.2 Barisan Nasional (BN)

Aziz Million
Hishammuddin @hishammuddinh2o 428 500 4.7 Barisan Nasional (BN)

Hussein Million
Fadhlina Sidek @fadhlinasidek 161 700 1.2 Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
Million
Hannah Yeoh @hannahyeohmp 128 300 1.4 Democratic Action Party

Million (DAP)
Nurul Izzah @n_izzah_anwar 117 100 537 000 Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
23
Adam Adli @adamadli.official 57 100 447 900 Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
Young Syefura @youngsyefura 98 500 432 800 Democratic Action Party

(DAP)
Ismail Sabri @ismailsabrirasmi 599 000 4.6 Barisan Nasional (BN)

Yaacob Million
Shahril @shahrilhamdan 83 400 766 400 Barisan Nasional (BN)

Hamdan
Taufiq Johari @taufiq_johari 29 300 359 000 Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)
Current data showed many Malaysia’s politicians created accounts on TikTok. Many
have succeeded to be influencers on TikTok with huge followers (see figure 1). Influencer is a
concept to describe people who are considered to have the ability to drive action and receive
people’s engagement on posts shared by powerful social influencers on social media or in real
life (Arora et al, 2019). An influencer is not always a celebrity, but everyone who can produce
the contents that inspire the followers (Enke & Borchers, 2019), including politicians.
Parties and politicians tended to convey different narratives and appealed to voters
through a variety of approaches on TikTok. Based on the observation, prior to the October
announcement of the 2022 Malaysian federal election, 12 candidates had established TikTok
accounts with 5 of those accounts belonging to Barisan Nasional (BN) candidates. Pakatan
Harapan (PH) coalition, which includes the Democratic Action Party (DAP), People’s Justice
Party (PKR), National Trust Party (AMANAH), and United Progressive Kinabalu Organisation
(UPKO), and collaborates with Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) youth leaders
were running their respective campaigns. Many first-time candidates such as Fadhlina Sidek,
Adam Adli, Taufiq Johari and Young Syefura (first attempt for parliamentary seat) focused on
developing a coherent media strategy and messaging. At times, local messages tailored for a
specific constituency were prioritized over national messages at campaign stops. This was
because of the need to strike a balance between emphasizing local issues while at the same
24
time addressing issues with state-wide or nation- wide resonance for online media consumption
as part of a coordinated coalition-wide strategy.
Barisan Nasional (BN) seemed to be less effective on TikTok than candidates from
other parties. Former Prime Minister, Ismail Sabri Yaacob topped the chart among BN leaders
with the highest number of followers (599 000), followed by former Health Minister Khairy
Jamaluddin with (538 800), former Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein (428 500),
former Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz (374 700) followers and last but not least Shahril
Hamdan with (83 400) followers.
4.2 Election campaigns activities during Malaysia's 15th General Election on TikTok
The politicians’ embrace of TikTok is a testament to the platform’s popularity among
Malaysian users, of whom 50% are in the 16–24 years age range. Connecting with younger
demographics on platforms like TikTok is integral for Malaysian politicians campaign, since
as Literat and Kligler-Vilenchik (2021) contend, while only a subset of youth are active in
institutional political spaces, many are negotiating their relations to the political realm by
contextualizing it within areas salient to them, including their popular culture interests.
Politicians may have been compelled to publish longer videos on more conventional media in
the past. Short videos thus likely draw younger voters.
Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul
Rahman frequently posts videos of him speaking at rallies and talking about politics. The Muar
candidate, whose MUDA party is a partner of Pakatan Harapan (PH) in GE15, has been posting
on TikTok since June 2020 at @syedsaddiq and has amassed over 928 700 followers. In one
video, he expressed his support for PH chairman Anwar Ibrahim, saying that Anwar has many
young and credible politicians backing him, not only DAP. He also pointed out the
inconsistencies within the BN coalition, including how its leaders manage the infighting among
themselves. The video got 1.8 million views.
25
Other notable candidates who have been using TikTok include BN candidate for the
Kuala Selangor parliamentary seat, caretaker finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz, and
caretaker health minister Khairy Jamaluddin who was running for the Sungai Buloh
parliamentary seat. Both users who post at @tzafrul_aziz and @khairykj respectively, have
been active in posting compilations of their visits and meetings with the people, videos of
themselves talking about politics, and occasionally participate in TikTok trends. Tengku Zafrul
posted a 6-minute long video explaining Budget 2023 which received more than 28,500 views
while Khairy has mainly been posting compilations of his campaigning efforts in Sungai Buloh
since his candidacy for the seat was announced. The campaign videos posted on TikTok allow
these candidates to engage with a wider audience as they can also be reposted to Instagram and
Facebook.
As TikTok is largely a platform used by the youth, such videos help to ensure that
young voters who may be less knowledgeable about politics are better informed before they
proceed to vote on Polling Day. Following a constitutional amendment that lowered the voting
age from 21 to 18, known as the Undi18 Bill, this would be the first general election where
young people aged 18 to 20 cast their ballots.
Analyzing the politicians TikTok provides insights into how they engage with the
platform vernacular of TikTok to attract young voters to ultimately achieve electoral success.
However, politicians and political parties should be mindful of the drawbacks and
shortcomings of social media use, despite all its advantages. Candidates who were engaged and
well- liked on social media were more likely to win over voters, especially young people who
were voting for the first time in the GE15.
4.3 TikTok and the 2022 Malaysian General Election

Malaysia’s recent general election demonstrates the potency of TikTok as a political
space, where parties adopted different strategies to appeal to voters, especially those who were
26
young and new. TikTok proved its political salience in Malaysia’s 15th general election (GE15).
Two developments, both stemming from the ‘Undi18’ constitutional amendment, increased its
potency. First, the voting age was lowered to 18 years, and second, new automatic voter
registration had made many people who previously did not bother to register especially those
who are eligible to vote. An additional six million voters were added to the register compared
to the previous general election, which was an increase of more than 30 percent. These young
or passive swing voters had no previous voting record or known party loyalties. Faced with
such uncertainty, political parties and politicians made every effort possible to court their
support. This is why TikTok and video campaigning in general featured prominently during
the campaign period and its immediate aftermath.
Figure 2: Election campaign on TikTok in 2022 Malaysian General Election
Candidates Frequency of content uploaded on Election results

TikTok during 2022 Malaysian (Won/Lost)
General Election campaign period
Syed Saddiq 13 Won
Khairy Jamaluddin 21 Lost
Tengku Zafrul Aziz 26 Lost
Hishammuddin Hussein 30 Won
Fadhlina Sidek 103 Won
Hannah Yeoh 17 Won
Nurul Izzah 6 Lost
Adam Adli 6 Won
Young Syefura 14 Won
Ismail Sabri Yaacob 18 Won
Shahril Hamdan 31 Lost
Taufiq Johari 2 Won
27
The data demonstrates the frequency of content uploaded on TikTok by the political
candidates during the electoral campaign period as well as the results of the election. The
election campaign period was 14 days starting from 5 November 2022 until 18 November 2022
(See figure 2).
Based on the findings, the majority of the candidates who frequently uploaded contents
on TikTok won the elections. Fadhlina Sidek, who was the first time candidate could be seen
best utilized the TikTok platform countering all the candidates. She had the highest frequency
of content uploaded on TikTok with a total 103 videos uploaded. As a first time candidate, it
is very important for her to introduce, interact and expand her engagement with the public.
TikTok is one of the key assets to reach out to them and attract potential voters, especially the
younger crowd. Apparently, she tailored her communication on TikTok and utilized the
platform wisely. This proves that the use of the TikTok as an election campaign strategy helps
her to achieve her political agenda which is to win the election.
On the other side of the coin, most prominent candidates such as Khairy Jamaluddin,
Nurul Izzah and Tengku Zafrul Aziz who were running on the hot seats surprisingly lost their
seats respectively. Even though they had many followers and likes on TikTok and frequently
uploaded contents on their TikTok profile, still they were defeated in the GE15 battleground.
There are probably other factors that influenced the election results. This case needs other in-
depth research about this.
Barisan Nasional (BN) candidates, on the other hand, seemed to be less effective on
TikTok compared to candidates from other parties. This is due to the fact that BN’s online
communications still relied largely on pro-BN news portals and websites. But it was then
UMNO information chief, Shahril Hamdan, who best utilized the TikTok platform to produce
rapid-response videos and frequently uploaded contents on TikTok with a total 31 videos
uploaded during the election campaign period countering their opponent’s talking points.
28
Unfortunately, he failed in Alor Gajah when he lost in his first attempt for a parliamentary seat.
Besides, the incumbent Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaacob who was at the top of the chart
with the highest number of followers on TikTok among the BN candidates retained Bera
parliament seat with a bigger majority. He was popular among his Pahang constituents and
generally among Malaysians as he was also a caretaker Prime Minister at that time, whilst the
former Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein, also retained his Sembrong seat although
the majority garnered did not achieve the desired target.
Interestingly, Taufiq Johari, a medical graduate and a first time candidate had won his
first attempt for a parliamentary seat. He won with a convincing 1115 majority votes in Sungai
Petani. On top of that, he was expected to win the seat as he is also the son of former Sungai
Petani Member of Parliament (MP), Johari Abdul. Based on the observation on TikTok, he
only posted 2 videos on his TikTok profile during the campaign period. This scenario indicates
that the relationship between the frequency of content upload and election results is negatively
associated. This could lead to another potential contributing factor of his winning. Another
potential factors of his winning would be personality, education background and others.
As for Malaysia's two utmost Tiktoker politicians, Syed Saddiq and Khairy Jamaluddin,
they are the only candidates whose TikTok accounts are verified. One of the criterias for
TikTok verification is the consistent daily follower growth. The TikTok accounts are
consistently gaining around 500 to 2000 followers per week. These two prominents politicians
are very active in social media consumption, not only TikTok applications but also on other
social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. Overall, it can be concluded that the
value of TikTok as a major GE15 battleground, given that it had fast-paced content, emotion-
provoking effect and was a most friendly cross-app tool. TikTok also allows users to engage
with a wider audience as they can also be reposted to Instagram and Facebook. In other words,
TikTok videos were easy to post across different platforms.
29
On the other side, Perikatan Nasional (PN) relied more on unsponsored and sponsored
content created by third parties. Neither Bersatu President and former Prime Minister
Muhyiddin Yassin nor Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) President Hadi Awang posted often on
their TikTok accounts, but anonymous third-party accounts like @Friendsofmuhyddinyassin
(242,000 followers) and @abekitemuhyddin (224,400 followers) posted three to four videos a
day. These tended to use roughly the same hashtags: #abah #abahpm10 #apakhabarsemua
(“How are you all?”, which was the way Muhyddin usually started his speeches),
#muhyddinyassin, #PNbest (“PN is best”, the `coalition’s catchphrase), #Islam,
#bersihdandstabil (“clean and stable”, the coalition’s campaign slogan), #anakmudasokongpas
(“youths support PAS”), and #pasdihati (“PAS in my heart”). Some of the most viewed pro-
PN content on TikTok were not created by accounts with large followings. Videos like ‘Ayoh
Chik’ (over 860,000 views) and ‘Five Reasons Why Youth Choose PN’ (over 2 million views)
were posted by accounts with only a few thousand followers.
A key difference between TikTok and other platforms is that the number of followers
matters less. The personalized #fyp (For Your Page) and hashtag-driven searches ensured a
more equal playing field. Videos made by ordinary content creators might become viral, not
only those by creators with a million followers. What this means for campaigns (political or
not) is that having many content creators with small followings could be as effective as, or even
more so, than having a few content creators with large followings.
Politicians and campaigners seem convinced that TikTok is an effective tool for
reaching out to newly enfranchised voters, especially those who have no prior party affiliation
or loyalty. This tabula rasa amongst them combined with TikTok’s personalized algorithm,
which can produce a filter bubble, creates a first-mover advantage, whoever reaches these
voters first can occupy their hearts and minds. As political parties and lobby groups step up
engagement with these voters on TikTok, effective regulation and content moderation would
30
be necessary to make it a safer and more civil space. But with the new technology still evolving,
it remains to be seen whether TikTok will retain its preeminent status among the young voters
in the next election cycle.
4.4 Limitations of the Study
Several limitations have been identified and should be noted throughout this research.
These limitations, however, did not detract from the importance of the findings, which would
be taken into account in future research. The most significant limitation was the lack of a
literature review based on Malaysia’s political landscape during this study. Further, the
political turmoil that happened very quickly every few months in Malaysia during this study
had also affected the perspective of the political situation.
Nevertheless, the researcher has successfully fulfilled the research objectives of the
study. However, the researcher faced several limitations throughout the research process,
mainly time constraints. There are deficiencies in this study and it is hoped that further research
can carry out a further analysis because the results of this analysis have the potential to be
developed into more comprehensive research through in-depth data collection techniques. The
researcher believes the intersection of social media and politics is ripe for more research, and
the paper will make a notable contribution in the field.
31
CHAPTER 5
CONCLUSION
To conclude, most of the politicians nowadays prefer to use a new media approach
compared to previous politicians where they use traditional approaches such as walkabout at
their place, political speech and posters distribution. Social media is widely used by those
politicians who are involved in the general election today. However, different social media
used will reach different target audiences. In this study, the relationship between the frequency
of content upload and election results is negatively associated. The more time politicians or
political leaders upload content on TikTok, it does not assure them to win the election.
Interestingly, even though most of them have many followers and likes on TikTok, it seems
that people prefer political leaders who update social media content more frequently than others,
but they do not necessarily trust everything published on political leaders’ social media pages.
This scenario calls for further research to understand more factors contributing to social media
content upload strategy success for politicians and political parties alike. Hence, to fully
understand voters’ behavior and the best content strategy to win the public’s perception of any
particular political agenda, more research and development are needed to further explore this
field, especially in Malaysia's highly volatile political situation.
The finding suggests that, with enough strategy, social media could erase the
incumbency advantage and bring Malaysian politics back to its grass roots. As political
campaigns are becoming increasingly more expensive and the need to reach out to
constituencies is becoming more vital, social media will undoubtedly play a more important
role in determining electoral outcomes.
32
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Social Media and Election Campaign: Tiktok As 2022 Malaysian General

Thesis · August 2023

Nurul Azmira Abdullah

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Political Science International Islamic

Nurul Azmira Binti Abdullah (G2014716)

help and kindness, I would not have made it.

to IIUM and the community of practice.

agenda setting theory.

the society in Malaysia politics game plan.

Keywords: Social Media, TikTok, Election campaign, Malaysia.

CHAPTER TITLE PAGE

Table of contents 3-4

1.1 Background of the Study 5-6

1.2 Statement of Problem 7-8

1.3 Significance of the Study 9

1.4 Research Questions 10

1.5 Research Objectives 10

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 The Use of Social Media for Disseminating and Election 11

2.2 Social Media and Political Agenda 12-13

2.3 Social Media and Its Impact 13-15

2.4 TikTok as a Medium for Political Campaign 15-17

2.5 Theoretical Framework 17-20

3.1 Research Design 21

3.2 Sampling Method 21

3.3 Data Collection 22

3.4 Data Analysis 22

4.1 TikTok as a Medium for Electoral Campaign 23-25

4.2 Election Campaign Activities during Malaysia’s 15th 25-26

General Election on TikTok

4.3 TikTok and the 2022 Malaysian General Election 26-31

4.4 Limitations of the Study 31

1.1 Background of the Study

therefore tailor their communication to the sociotechnical environments of platforms.

matters. In addition, The Media, Communications and Multimedia Commission says 95

record and share videos.

Social media presence in Malaysian politics is more prominent at the individual

innovations in video content for GE15.

voters, social media can effectively help a candidate or party to victory.

1.2 Statement of Problem

Social media is proving to be a critical channel through which we develop a perception

New media technologies are central to Malaysia’s general election campaigns.

In 2018’s GE14, the professional organization of WhatsApp messenger content and

Furthermore, there is a drawback towards media-centered democracy primarily because

comes as the minimum voting age has been lowered to 18.

1.3 Significance of the Study

This study is significant to the following stakeholders:

1) Political Science Department

discussions and engagements in the department.

too much on social media in gathering information.

3) The legislative body

1.4 Research Questions

15th General Election?

1.5 Research Objectives

Malaysian General Election.

networking sites to gather information about political organizations and candidates.

be regarded as a potential platform to engage in politics to attract voters.

2.2 Social Media and Political Agenda

at website design and driven by a commitment to change.

media is used to share political news among the public.

The development and ascendancy of the Internet as an informational medium has