Ross Candido
Social media engagement from political parties has peaked ahead of the Australian federal election.
Data analysis from monitoring company Meltwater covered 1.3 million posts across social and news media from March 14 to May 1. The Election Centre dashboard tracked trending themes, key issues, political share of voice, sentiment shifts, and party reputation across both news and social channels.
Meltwater VP ANZ Ross Candido said this is Australia’s first truly social media-led election, where influencers and social-first content are setting the tone of the national conversation.
“We’re seeing a clear shift, not just in what voters care about, but how and where they engage,” Candido said.
Election posts have generated more than 4 million engagements with a 20% increase in the past two weeks.
The cost of living dominated engagement with a 20.1m reach while power and energy remained the most discussed topics overall at 109,000.
Peter Dutton has more than double the posts and engagements compared to Albanese at 180,000 posts and 1.8 million engagements, but negative sentiment continues to overshadow his mentions.
“The latest polling shows early voting preferences leaning toward the Liberal Party, though Labor maintains a slight lead on a two-party preferred basis,” Candido said.
“What’s particularly compelling is how closely social media sentiment mirrored voter behaviour in the last election—and whether that will prove true again.”
Social media conversations are outpacing traditional news coverage in both volume and engagement according to Meltwater’s April insights.
A satirical Betoota Advocate post about adding dental to Medicare before buying nuclear submarines reached 173,000 with more than 27,000 engagements. Joe Exotic ‘Tiger King’’s endorsement of Albanese attracted more than 12,000 engagements, according to 9News’s Instagram.
Influencer Abbie Chatfield featured Greens Leader Adam Bandt DJ-ing to encourage youth voting for the Greens attracted 22,000 engagements and 79,000 reach. Both Bandt and Anthony Albanese appeared on her podcast It’s a Lot.
“Australians have been highly engaged online, and some of the most impactful voices this election aren’t politicians or journalists, but everyday creators shaping public opinion in real time,” Candido said.
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