From Obama to Lula: How Digital Supporters Are Reshaping Elections
Brazil's presidential election has added a new chapter to the story of digital politics. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, 81, overcame a first-round deficit to win the second round decisively. Analysts point to the 'Lula Army', a social media network of supporters, as a key reason for his comeback.
Lula's campaign was trailing Flavio Bolsonaro after the first round, and it responded by overhauling its digital strategy. The most prominent element was a WhatsApp group called the 'Lula Army', whose membership reportedly climbed from about 60,000 to nearly 11 million.
MP Andre Janones led the group. Members received short daily assignments, such as sharing videos in support of Lula, boosting his visibility online, reaching out to other voters, and posting personal pictures that gave the campaign a collective face.
Youth engagement was a major focus. Supporters were asked to share images of themselves wearing Brazil's national football jersey while backing Lula. The move aimed to reclaim a national emblem that had been increasingly associated with Bolsonaro's supporters.
Lula also changed his own style. Having previously preferred others to handle his digital outreach, he began shooting selfie videos. Reports say he got his first smartphone just four days before the election, and he then turned to direct video messages to reach voters.
The approach has a notable precedent in the United States. Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign was among the first to treat the internet and social media as tools for turning supporters into active campaigners. Its online platform, 'my.barackobama.com', allowed people to connect, organise local efforts, and bring in new participants.
A Stanford Graduate School of Business study noted that Obama's team used technology to raise campaign funds and to build volunteers who believed they could influence the outcome. Pew Research Center data from 2009 showed that 55 percent of American adults had used the internet for election-related information or political discussion in 2008. Obama's online supporters were more active than McCain's.
India's 2014 Lok Sabha campaign showed similar traits. The Bharatiya Janata Party, led by Narendra Modi, made social media a central part of its strategy. Using Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, it deployed digital volunteers, online campaign teams, and technical tools to reach voters at scale.
Researchers who examined 98,363 tweets from 11 political parties during the 2014 elections found that the BJP gave more attention to youth-related issues and sought to engage voters on Twitter. Their work linked internet access and first-time voter numbers to election outcomes. They also stressed that social media could not be treated as the only factor behind victory.
The Obama, Modi, and Lula campaigns each used digital tools differently. Obama's effort stressed volunteer networks and online fundraising. Modi's campaign expanded political dialogue and digital reach across platforms. Lula's campaign made WhatsApp groups and content creators the basis of organised supporter participation.
Despite the digital push, Lula's win should not be attributed solely to online campaigning. Youth protests, political polarisation, welfare programmes, and voter mobilisation were also significant.
These examples nonetheless highlight a larger shift in democratic politics. Parties must now ask how many people will actively share their message, not just how many can see it. A large number of social media followers is one thing. Converting them into engaged campaign participants is far more demanding.