The Cision/Brandwatch Barometer revealed on Tuesday that during the second week of debates, there were changes in the leadership of the most mentioned candidate on social media.
Pedro Nuno Santos of the Socialist Party (PS) regained momentum and overtook Luís Montenegro of the Democratic Alliance (AD) and André Ventura of the Chega Party (CH), becoming “the most mentioned candidate on social media with 22% of the mentions”.
The leader of Chega ranked second with 19%, while the current prime minister completed the top three with 18%.
Regarding topics, the top three remain unchanged, with Housing generating 36% of mentions, followed by Immigration at 29%, and Health at 19%, reflecting the ongoing concern of the Portuguese with the persistent issue of high rents.
Reactions to the Debates
The first debate on the Wednesday of Easter opposed the Democratic Alliance and the Left Bloc, featuring Nuno Melo (AD) and Joana Mortágua (BE) as representatives. Joana Mortágua was subject to a car burglary, a topic that sparked reactions, mixing humor with political commentary. Many users took advantage of the incident to criticize urban security and the efficacy of current political leadership. The twin sister of the BE leader received the most mentions, 59%, with security being the most discussed issue at 36%.
In another debate last Wednesday, André Ventura (CH) faced Paulo Raimundo (PCP). Social media users highlighted the candidates’ strategies, praising Paulo Raimundo’s calm demeanor in contrast to Ventura’s rhetoric, which was criticized as provocative. The leader of Chega was the most mentioned with 51%, and Immigration was the most discussed topic with 54%.
The last day of debates before Easter began with a left-wing debate between Pedro Nuno Santos (PS) and Rui Tavares (Livre). Online, users noted the PS leader’s strategic voting approach needed to overthrow the right. Pedro Nuno Santos was mentioned most with 84%, focusing primarily on Housing with 51% of the mentions.
Another debate of the day featured André Ventura (CH) against Rui Rocha (IL). Social media once again highlighted Ventura’s populist approach, but also noted Rui Rocha’s critical response to this approach, emphasizing potential national bankruptcy.
André Ventura received the most mentions (59%), with Immigration being the most highlighted topic at 52%.
The debate that generated the most social media mentions remained the one between André Ventura (CH) and Rui Tavares (Livre), with 12%, while the debates generating least mentions featured BE/Pan and IL/Livre, each with only 1%.
Which Parties Use Social Media the Most?
This week’s Cision/Brandwatch Barometer provides new insights into the use of social media, specifically Facebook, Instagram, and X, by political parties.
According to the ranking, the Communist Party (PCP) is the most active on social media, with 286 posts since the debates began on the 7th. On the other hand, the Social Democratic Party (PSD) is the least active, with only 38 posts.
In terms of engagement, interaction, and user involvement, Chega is the party achieving the highest level, with 43% of the interactions.
The data for this study was collected using the Brandwatch platform, a company within the Cision group, a global leader in consumer digital intelligence and social media monitoring. Brandwatch utilizes the latest in artificial intelligence and machine learning to structure and extract value from the opinions of millions of social media users.
