With a large following, many publications, and a great deal of engagement, the Sweden Democrats continue to stand out on social media ahead of this year's EU election, according to a recent mapping.
Media analysis company Infomedia has, together with Talkwalker, examined the parties' posts, followers, and growth on Facebook, Instagram, X, and Tiktok between April 1 and May 29 this year. The mapping concerns the parties' public accounts.
It is less resource-intensive to venture onto social media than to knock on doors or call voters, which makes the platforms important primarily for smaller parties.
SD has the most followers on most platforms, belongs to those who publish the most, and receives by far the most engagement, that is, reactions to posts. On Facebook, SD has 345,000 followers, significantly more than the second-placed Social Democrats (244,000). SD's 148 posts during the period received over 830,000 engagements, while S's 110 posts received almost 158,000 engagements.
There is a connection between a populist style and high engagement, according to Mattias Ekman, docent in media and communication science at Stockholm University. Dry, issue-based posts have a harder time spreading than emotionally charged posts.
Engagement can also be negative, with posts meeting critical comments.
SD has been working with humor, satire, and entertainment since earlier. Other parties have begun experimenting with new formats for political communication.
Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube continue to be important for the parties. However, it is only on Tiktok that there is actual growth, according to the mapping.
