Building a Political Image Through Digital Space: Study of the Three Heads of the Gerindra, Golkar, and Democratic Party
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18196/jgpp.v12i1.20272Keywords:
Digital Space, Political Parties, Leader, Indonesia Election, Political ElectabilityAbstract
Ahead of the 2024 elections, political parties have begun to prepare themselves in choosing their candidates. In fact, some political parties have decided to carry their general chairman to become President or vice president. The political parties are Democrats with their chairman Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, Golkar with Airlangga Hartarto, and Gerindra with Prabowo Subianto. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the utilization of digital space by political party leaders in building electability for the 2024 Indonesian elections. The novelty of this research lies in its exploration of how digital platforms, specifically Twitter, shape the strategies of political leaders in Indonesia's contemporary electoral landscape, providing fresh insights into the evolving nature of political campaigning in the digital age. This study used a qualitative method and literature study data collection techniques. This study uses NVIVO 12 analysis software to analyze data. The findings in this study show that the three political party leaders used Twitter facilities to build their political electability for the 2024 elections as part of their efforts to become potential candidates. The intensity of use does not necessarily influence the utilization of digital space for political candidates to build political electability but also involves other factors, namely in the form of loyalist capital and the popularity of previous political experience. This is a reinforcement for political candidates to expand the electability of voters by targeting digital users. Therefore, this research will contribute to the further development of the theory of political electability, specifically in the context of the influence of social media usage, particularly Twitter, on increasing the electability of political party leaders. It aims to support and strengthen previous studies on similar issues related to enhancing the electability of political leaders ahead of the 2024 elections.
References
Benstead, L. J., Jamal, A. A., & Lust, E. (2015). Is it gender, religiosity or both? A role congruity theory of candidate electability in transitional Tunisia. Perspectives on Politics, 13(1), 74–94. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592714003144
Bode, L., & Dalrymple, K. E. (2016). Politics in 140 characters or less: Campaign communication, network interaction, and political participation on Twitter. Journal of Political Marketing, 15(4), 311–332. https://doi.org/10.1080/15377857.2014.959686
Bor, S. E. (2013). Using Social Network Sites to Improve Communication Between Political Campaigns and Citizens in the 2012 Election. American Behavioral Scientist, 58(9), 1195–1213. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764213490698
Bruns, A. (2016). Tweeting to save the furniture: the 2013 Australian election campaign on Twitter. Media International Australia, 162(1), 49–64. https://doi.org/10.1177/1329878X16669001
Buccoliero, L., Bellio, E., Crestini, G., & Arkoudas, A. (2020). Twitter and politics: Evidence from the US presidential elections 2016. Journal of Marketing Communications, 26(1), 88–114. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2018.1504228
Budiharto, W., & Meiliana, M. (2018). Prediction and analysis of Indonesia Presidential election from Twitter using sentiment analysis. Journal of Big Data, 5(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40537-018-0164-1
CNNIndonesia.com. (2023). Survei Capres: Ganjar, Prabowo, dan Anies Bersaing Ketat. Cnnindonesia.Com. https://www.cnnindonesia.com/nasional/20230321174217-617-927988/survei-capres-ganjar-prabowo-dan-anies-bersaing-ketat
Coddington, M., Molyneux, L., & Lawrence, R. G. (2014). Fact Checking the Campaign: How Political Reporters Use Twitter to Set the Record Straight (or Not). International Journal of Press/Politics, 19(4), 391–409. https://doi.org/10.1177/1940161214540942
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications.
Dirgantara, A. (2023). Gerindra Klaim Dua “Tanda Baik” Prabowo Bakal Jadi Presiden 2024. Kompas.Com. https://nasional.kompas.com/read/2023/03/23/18420721/gerindra-klaim-dua-tanda-baik-prabowo-bakal-jadi-presiden-2024
Dolezal, M. (2015). Online campaigning by Austrian political candidates: Determinants of using personal websites, Facebook, and Twitter. Policy & Internet, 7(1), 103–119. https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.83
Ekman, M., & Widholm, A. (2014). Twitter and the celebritisation of politics. Celebrity Studies, 5(4), 518–520. https://doi.org/10.1080/19392397.2014.981038
Enli, G. S., & Skogerbø, E. (2017). Personalized campaigns in party-centred politics: Twitter and Facebook as arenas for political communication: PERSONALIZED CAMPAIGNS IN PARTY-CENTRED POLITICS Twitter and Facebook as arenas for political communication. In Social Media and Election Campaigns (pp. 131–133). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315680439-21
Fahmi, Y. (2023). Airlangga Capres Golkar pada Pilpres 2024, Apa Kabar Calon Koalisi Indonesia Bersatu? Liputan6.Com. https://www.liputan6.com/surabaya/read/5187205/airlangga-capres-golkar-pada-pilpres-2024-apa-kabar-calon-koalisi-indonesia-bersatu
Gerodimos, R., & Justinussen, J. (2015). Obama’s 2012 Facebook campaign: Political communication in the age of the like button. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 12(2), 113–132. https://doi.org/10.1080/19331681.2014.982266
Graham, T., Jackson, D., & Broersma, M. (2014). New platform, old habits? Candidates’ use of Twitter during the 2010 British and Dutch general election campaigns. New Media & Society, 18(5), 765–783. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814546728
Gunawong, P., & Pusaksrikit, T. (2015). Flood Twittering: A Marketing and Public Policy Perspective Through the Lens of Actor-Network Theory BT -. In K. Kubacki (Ed.), Ideas in Marketing: Finding the New and Polishing the Old (pp. 181–184). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10951-0_66
Hazan, R. Y. (2014). Candidate selection: Implications and challenges for legislative behaviour. In The Oxford handbook of legislative studies (pp. 213–230). Oxford University Press Oxford.
Hidayah, N. (2023). Demokrat Berharap Anies Pilih AHY Jadi Cawapres. Mediaindonesia.Com. https://mediaindonesia.com/politik-dan-hukum/553660/demokrat-berharap-anies-pilih-ahy-jadi-cawapres
Jones, P. E., Brewer, P. R., & Young, D. G. (2016). The effects of traditional news, partisan talk, and political satire programs on perceptions of presidential candidate viability and electability. Atlantic Journal of Communication, 24(3), 172–184. https://doi.org/10.1080/15456870.2016.1184666
Jungherr, A. (2016). Twitter use in election campaigns: A systematic literature review. Journal of Information Technology & Politics, 13(1), 72–91. https://doi.org/10.1080/19331681.2015.1132401
Kao, K., & Benstead, L. J. (2021). Female electability in the Arab World: The advantages of intersectionality. Comparative Politics, 53(3), 427–464. https://doi.org/10.5129/001041521X15957812372871
Kasadha, J., & Kantono, R. (2022). Media representation and its impact on female candidates’ electability in parliamentary elections: A content analysis of three Ugandan newspapers. Journal of Public Affairs, 22(4), e2616. https://doi.org/10.1002/pa.2616
Kenny, M., & Verge, T. (2016). Opening up the black box: Gender and candidate selection in a new era. Government and Opposition, 51(3), 351–369. https://doi.org/10.1017/gov.2016.5
Khadafi, R., Nurmandi, A., Qodir, Z., & Misran. (2022). Hashtag as a new weapon to resist the COVID-19 vaccination policy: a qualitative study of the anti-vaccine movement in Brazil, USA, and Indonesia. Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics, 18(1), 2042135. https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2022.2042135
Koc-Michalska, K., Lilleker, D. G., & Vedel, T. (2016). Civic political engagement and social change in the new digital age. New Media & Society, 18(9), 1807–1816. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444815616218
Kolli, S., & Khajeheian, D. (2020). How Actors of Social Networks Affect Differently on the Others? Addressing the Critique of Equal Importance on Actor-Network Theory by Use of Social Network Analysis BT -. In I. Williams (Ed.), Contemporary Applications of Actor Network Theory (pp. 211–230). Springer Nature Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-7066-7_12
Kristiyanti, D. A., & Umam, A. H. (2019). Prediction of indonesia presidential election results for the 2019-2024 period using twitter sentiment analysis. 2019 5th International Conference on New Media Studies (CONMEDIA), 36–42. https://doi.org/10.1109/CONMEDIA46929.2019.8981823
Kruikemeier, S. (2014). How political candidates use Twitter and the impact on votes. Computers in Human Behavior, 34, 131–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2014.01.025
Lalancette, M., & Raynauld, V. (2017). The Power of Political Image: Justin Trudeau, Instagram, and Celebrity Politics. American Behavioral Scientist, 63(7), 888–924. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764217744838
Leeper, T. J., & Slothuus, R. (2014). Political parties, motivated reasoning, and public opinion formation. Political Psychology, 35, 129–156. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12164
Mandhasiya, D. G., Murfi, H., Bustamam, A., & Anki, P. (2022). Evaluation of Machine Learning Performance Based on BERT Data Representation with LSTM Model to Conduct Sentiment Analysis in Indonesian for Predicting Voices of Social Media Users in the 2024 Indonesia Presidential Election. 2022 5th International Conference on Information and Communications Technology (ICOIACT), 441–446. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICOIACT55506.2022.9972206
Martínez-Rolán, X., & Piñeiro-Otero, T. (2016). The use of memes in the discourse of political parties on Twitter: Analysing the 2015 state of the nation debate. Communication and Society, 29(1), 145–159. https://doi.org/10.15581/003.29.1.145-159
Mustofa, M. U., Aulia, M. R., Ramadhani, R., & Nurfadillah, K. S. (2022). The Flood Politicization and Social Media: Ecological Disaster, Satire, and the Contestation of the 2024 Indonesia Presidential Election on Twitter. JISPO Jurnal Ilmu Sosial Dan Ilmu Politik, 12(1), 39–62. https://doi.org/10.15575/jispo.v12i1.14577
Peacock, C., Dugger, H., Fanelli, J. K., Harris, A. J., McLelland, J. B., & Richardson, L. A. (2020). Choosing a Candidate: Traits, Issues, and Electability. American Behavioral Scientist, 65(3), 540–557. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764220978458
Pond, P., & Lewis, J. (2019). Riots and Twitter: connective politics, social media and framing discourses in the digital public sphere. Information, Communication & Society, 22(2), 213–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2017.1366539
Purnawan, H. (2022). Sah, Pemilu 14 Februari 2024 Disepakati DPR, Pemerintah, dan Penyelenggara Pemilu. Bawaslu.Go.Id. https://www.bawaslu.go.id/id/berita/sah-pemilu-14-februari-2024-disepakati-dpr-pemerintah-dan-penyelenggara-pemilu-1
Rahat, G., & Cross, W. P. (2018). Political Parties and Candidate Selection. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228637.013.625
Sánchez Medero, R. (2020). Democratization in Political Communication. Political Studies Review, 19(4), 607–623. https://doi.org/10.1177/1478929920924930
Stier, S., Bleier, A., Lietz, H., & Strohmaier, M. (2020). Election campaigning on social media: Politicians, audiences, and the mediation of political communication on Facebook and Twitter. In Studying politics across media (pp. 50–74). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429202483-4
Subekti, D., & Al-hamdi, R. (2024). Political Motives of Islamic Parties in Nominating Celebrities as Legislative Candidates for the 2024 Elections. Jurnal Pemerintahan Dan Kebijakan, 4(3), 160–170. https://doi.org/10.18196/jpk.v4i3.18673
Subekti, D., & Mutiarin, D. (2023). Political Polarization in Social Media: A Meta-Analysis. Thammasat Review, 26(2), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.14456/tureview.2023.11
Subekti, D., Nurmandi, A., & Mutiarin, D. (2022). Mapping Publication Trend of Political Parties Campaign in Social Media: A Bibliometric Analysis. Journal of Political Marketing, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/15377857.2022.2104424
Subekti, D., Nurmandi, A., Mutiarin, D., Suswanta, & Salahudin. (2021). Analysis of Twitter’s Election Official as Tools for Communication and Interaction with Indonesian Public During the 2019 Presidential Election in Indonesia BT -. In T. Antipova (Ed.), Advances in Digital Science (pp. 309–323). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-71782-7_28
Toha, R. J., Gueorguiev, D. D., & Sinpeng, A. (2021). The normalization of intolerance: The 2019 presidential election in Indonesia. Electoral Studies, 74, 102391. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electstud.2021.102391
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Journal of Governance and Public Policy
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
With the receipt of the article by the Editorial Board of the Journal of Governance and Public Policy and it was decided to be published, then the copyright regarding the article will be diverted to Journal of Governance and Public Policy.
We hold the copyright regarding all the published articles and have the right to multiply and distribute the article under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. (CC BY NC).
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material
Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
COPYRIGHT TRANSFER FORM
The Copyright Transfer Agreement can be downloaded HERE.
please fill, sign, scan and send it back in PDF format to jgpp@umy.university.
