Twitter records 396 million tweets over 6 weeks of Lok Sabha elections
A total of 3.2 million tweets were recorded on Counting Day alone
Twitter recorded 396 million tweets for #LokSabhaElections2019. Over the last several months, candidates and citizens have made Twitter the destination for breaking news and real-time public discussions about the elections.
The election spanned six weeks and culminated in Counting Day when India determined its Prime Minister Narendra Modi (@NarendraModi), through the election of 534 Members of Parliament across 29 states 7 Union Territories.
The news broke on Twitter through this historic Tweet that received hundreds of thousands of Replies, Retweets and Likes in the span of a few minutes, making it the most Retweeted Tweet of the election:
LIVE: Congress President @RahulGandhi addresses media at Congress HQ. https://t.co/df5N3kMY5Y
— Congress (@INCIndia) 23 May 2019
सबका साथ + सबका विकास + सबका विश्वास = विजयी भारत
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 23 May 2019
Together we grow.
Together we prosper.
Together we will build a strong and inclusive India.
India wins yet again! #VijayiBharat
Emphasising the importance of engaging in public dialogue on the platform, Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) conceded the election through this livestream from @INCIndia:
Congratulations to @BJP4India & @narendramodi on a decisive victory. The people of India have made their decision & we respect their mandate. We'd like to thank all our workers for their hard work. We wish the new govt the best & look forward to working towards India's future.
— Congress (@INCIndia) 23 May 2019
The volume of conversation around #LokSabhaElections2019, including Tweets from candidates, political parties, citizens and the news media ensured that from January 1, 2019, till May 23, 2019, Twitter saw more than 396 million Tweets on the platform, a 600% growth from 2014.
A total of 3.2 million Tweets were observed on Counting Day itself, with 1/3rd of the Tweets being recorded between 3 and 4pm, at the same hour that Prime Minister Modi tweeted.
Despite being an election for the Indian Prime Minister, the impact of #LokSabhaElections2019 was felt across the world. Conversations unfolded across the globe, with world leaders, celebrities and Indian diaspora engaging in dialogue about the new government.
Heat Map for Counting Day (GIF from Trendsmap):
https://www.trendsmap.com/v/hpTs
Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI), Prime Minister of Pakistan:
I congratulate Prime Minister Modi on the electoral victory of BJP and allies. Look forward to working with him for peace, progress and prosperity in South Asia
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) 23 May 2019
Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu), Prime Minister of Israel:
मेरे दोस्त @narendramodi आपके प्रभावशाली चुनावी जीत पर हार्दिक बधाई! ये चुनावी नतीजे एक बार फिर दुनिया के सबसे बड़े लोकतंत्र में आपके नेतृत्व को साबित करते हैं। हम साथ मिलकर भारत और इज़राइल के बीच घनिष्ट मित्रता को मजबूत करना जारी रखेंगे । बहुत बढ़िया, मेरे दोस्त ?????
— Benjamin Netanyahu (@netanyahu) 23 May 2019
More tweets from global leaders can be viewed through this Twitter moment:
https://twitter.com/i/events/1131497628590518272
Throughout the campaign period, politicians and political parties used Twitter to communicate with Indian citizens in the country and across the world, while citizens took to the platform to address their queries directly to contesting leaders.
@NarendraModi emerged as the most mentioned figure during the entire course of #LokSabhaElections2019, and @BJP4India handle along with the handles of their National Democratic Alliance members took 53% of the mentions on Twitter.
The @INCIndia handle along with handles of other members of the United Progressive Alliance received 37% of the mentions.
Here are the leaders who were most mentioned on the platform during this election period:
During the course of the six weeks of the election from April 11 till May 19, national security emerged as the most talked about election-related topic on Twitter, followed by religion, jobs and employment, agriculture, and finally demonetisation.
With the BJP and its lead campaigner Prime Minister Narendra Modi receiving a landslide victory in the #LokSabhaElections2019, celebrities and leaders took to the platform to share their congratulatory messages.
Would like to congratulate @AmitShah sir for #BJP4India victory today in the elections ✌?✌?... #phirSeModiSarkar
— Saina Nehwal (@NSaina) 23 May 2019
लोक सभा चुनाव की प्रभावशाली जीत पर प्रधानमंत्री मोदीजी और पार्टी अध्यक्ष श्री अमित शाह को बहुत बहुत बधाई। एक नए भारत निर्माण के लिए अब आपके पास शक्तिशाली जनादेश है। हम सभी, बड़े उत्साह से असरदार शुरुआती १०० दिनों की उम्मीद करते है। हम सब की शुभकामनाएं आपके साथ हैं।
— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) 23 May 2019
With 67% counted, my lead has crossed 42,000 & I am leading in six of the seven Assembly constituencies in my MP constituency. #TharoorForTvm But sad & disappointed about the national picture.
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) 23 May 2019
"We respect the mandate given by people. I, on behalf of AAP, congratulate BJP for their victory and also congratulate @narendramodi for becoming PM once again"- @Saurabh_MLAgk pic.twitter.com/Pm7PXLS1LJ
— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) 23 May 2019
Respected dear @narendramodi ji
— Rajinikanth (@rajinikanth) 23 May 2019
hearty congratulations ... You made it !!! God bless.
How was 2019 different from 2014?
Along with a growth in the volume of conversation, 2019 saw a 600% growth over the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the #LokSabhaElections2019 emoji featured hashtags across Indian languages, not just English and Hindi. While English and Hindi remained the dominant languages of conversation, we saw a substantial number of Tweets in Tamil (#நாடாளுமன்றதேர்தல்) followed by Gujarati (#લોકસભાચૂંટણી), represented by the use of the Twitter Lok Sabha Elections emoji hashtags.
Regional Diversification
Twitter’s focus was on ensuring parity of representation in conversation regardless of where the candidates were from, which is why particular focus for this Lok Sabha election was placed on onboarding regional and diverse voices that represent India.
In the last year alone, 10 regional political parties (@SBSP4INDIA, @JmmJharkhand, @maiamofficial, @JanataDal_S, @RJDforIndia, @trspartyonline, @ShivSena, @YSRCParty, @NCPspeaks, @JaiTDP) joined Twitter in the months leading up to the elections. Post 2014, prominent politicians including @RahulGandhi and @Mayawati, among others, made their debuts on social media with Twitter.
The platform also collaborated with civil society partners like @YlacIndia, @ReDiSocials, @ImpulseNGO, @SociallyBlog hosting election events across the country, focusing on the importance of the youth vote, the use of social media for elections and other agendas for 2019.
Twitter-First Programming
Twitter also built original programming with key partners in an effort to serve the public conversation, Twitter launched the #ChaupalOnTwitter series, which helped candidates engage with their constituents, receiving more than 1 million views across 19 sessions. Credible news partners showcasing all sides of the story, including veteran journalist Vikram Chandra (@vikramchandra) launching a Twitter-first show called #TwitterDialogues, which accrued more than 1.6 million video views, while a range of credible news partners live-streamed content on Twitter during Counting Day.
#PowerOf18
Twitter India’s #PowerOf18 campaign also emphasised the importance of the youth vote by partnering with key influencers like Bollywood star Rajkummar Rao (@RajkummarRao), actor Rithvik Dhanjani (@rithvik_RD), singer and actor Jassie Gill (@JassieGill) and gold medal-winning boxing champ Nikhat Zareen (@nikhat_zareen ). These videos accrued more than 5 million views on Twitter. While heading to the polls is critical for any democracy, the campaign also showcased the importance of engaging in civic dialogue. Through a special research study commissioned, Twitter found that two in three Indian Twitter users believe that they are contributing to the public debate by Tweeting on Twitter.
