Social Media and the 2020 Presidential Election in Poland: Survey Research

This study investigates the role of social media during the 2020 presidential election in Poland, held amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary motivation behind the research was to explore the relationship between voters’ social media activity and their electoral preferences, as well as to identify which types of political content were perceived as most engaging by users. The study addresses a gap in the literature concerning the impact of digital campaigning strategies on voter behavior in crisis conditions. To achieve this, an online survey was conducted among 510 social media users residing in Poland. The central hypothesis was that the social media activities of presidential candidates constituted a crucial component of their electoral campaigns. Methodologically, the study combined media content analysis, statistical analysis, and comparative analysis to evaluate the data. The findings confirm that candidates’ presence and promotional efforts on social platforms significantly influenced voter engagement and preference, underlining the growing importance of social media in modern political communication.