Since the announcement of the first results of the U.S. presidential election, videos posted on TikTok, where users film themselves either exulting or bursting into tears, have become ubiquitous. It must be said that social media platforms (Instagram, TikTok, and X, formerly Twitter) played a crucial role in the race for the U.S. presidency.
By Nora BussignyWith 388 posts per second and more than 33.5 million in 24 hours, the U.S. presidential election shook up social media, as reported by the digital monitoring platform Visibrain. These staggering statistics were nearly twice as high as those seen in the 2020 election. Since last January, with over 1 billion posts on the U.S. election, this presidential race has set records on social media. These platforms have become essential for aspiring candidates to the White House, as both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris clearly understood. This is not new – Barack Obama was the first to mobilize his teams to encourage voters to take part in the 2008 elections.
Kamala & TikTok
Kamala Harris is progressive, inclusive, and even accused of “wokism” or “pink-washing” (using the progressive cause for marketing purposes), and her teams realized that the place for the Democratic candidate was on TikTok. The Chinese social media platform, extremely popular among young people, allows videos posted online to go viral in an instant. With twice as many followers as Donald Trump, Kamala Harris is followed by over 6.1 million people on TikTok despite her recent engagement on the app. With videos that surpass several million views, Kamala Harris’s team published an average of one video per day, according to Visibrain, three times less than Donald Trump. The hashtag #TogetherWithKamala, launched on social media by the candidate’s team, encouraged voters to share an anecdote or their personal story related to equality, progressivism, and social justice. Her video “Thank You America” particularly stood out on TikTok and garnered over 24 million views. Supported by celebrities such as Eminem, Beyoncé, George Clooney, and Bruce Springsteen, Kamala Harris had influential allies backing her. In particular, Taylor Swift’s support for the Democratic candidate was the most often mentioned on social media.
Elon Musk : the Trump’s Weapon of Mass Destruction
Supporters, a 2.0 strategy, and a top-tier communications team, however, were not enough for Kamala Harris to win the election. A victory that could perhaps already be seen through the statistics on social media. According to Visibrain, the criminal conviction of Donald Trump and his assassination attempt were the two most discussed events online during the presidential election year, with 22 million messages posted on July 14.
Another key point was the hashtag #SecureOurBorders, used online to denounce U.S. immigration policy. Trump’s supporters massively adopted it to warn voters that only his election could save America. Twenty-four hours before the results, on election day, the Republican candidate was at the center of nearly 20 million messages on social media, according to Visibrain. “By comparison, that’s three times more than the Democratic candidate,” analyzed Marie Guyomarc’h of Visibrain. Not long before, a video of Donald Trump at McDonald’s had become one of the most viewed on his TikTok account. It was a jab at Kamala Harris, where his opponent mocked her by claiming he had worked longer than her at McDonald’s.
But, according to analysts, Trump’s victory also seems to be Elon Musk’s. The billionaire, founder of SpaceX, Tesla, and owner of X (formerly Twitter), had openly supported Donald Trump, even financially. With a $120 million donation to the Republican campaign, Elon Musk had reinstated Trump’s Twitter account following the purchase of the social media platform in 2022. “We would be thrilled to have Elon Musk in our administration. We are very inclusive,” said Donald Trump shortly before the election. In response, the billionaire explicitly stated on X that he “looked forward to serving America if the opportunity arises” and, of course, “without salary, title, or recognition.” According to revelations from The Wall Street Journal, the X algorithm favors content supporting Donald Trump. This information is further corroborated by Musk’s clear enthusiasm on his personal account, which is followed by over 200 million users. With thousands of tweets in favor of Trump, his policies, and issues raised by the Republican candidate, Elon Musk has also been accused of spreading fake news. For example, the billionaire shared false information on the Biden administration, wrongfully accusing it of diverting aid funds meant for victims of hurricanes Milton and Helene to finance immigration.
Interference and Fake News
However, the 2.0 enthusiasm for Donald Trump cannot be credibly criticized without addressing the issue of Russian interference on social media. On X, fake videos that are completely fabricated quickly go viral, such as the fake news spread in September accusing Kamala Harris of hitting a teenager on the road. This false information was viewed more than 5 million times before it was removed, during the middle of the election campaign. The links between the author of the fake news and Russia were later set up.
The same occurred when a pro-Russian network, as later confirmed by U.S. intelligence services, circulated a video showing a man tampering with Donald Trump’s ballots in Pennsylvania. This information was quickly debunked by the state, but it had already created the impression among voters that they were being prevented from voting for Trump and could not trust the election results.
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