Voter manipulation and electoral campaign hijacking by social media technologies: The Romania 2024 case

The purpose of this study is to present how populism, the far right, sovereignism, nationalism and the anti-system offensive coalesced in Romania in a large-scale movement to support a candidate for the country's presidency. The movement took place on the social platform TikTok, largely invisible to other voters and supporters of other political parties, since many of them did not use this application. It was a surprise even for the authorities, with the Constitutional Court of Romania deciding to invalidate the November-December 2024 election and to choose to resume it under new conditions. Technological mechanisms to influence the elections were detected, by manipulating TikTok algorithms, including involving foreign powers. It is an unprecedented phenomenon in Romania, in which social media technology has led to the possibility of an undetectable proliferation of persuasive messages for a candidate through opinion polls. This proliferation was initially facilitated by coordinated networks of automated accounts and subsequently reinforced through widespread user engagement. The question arises whether the decision to rerun the election represents an action to undermine democracy or a necessary measure to avoid the destruction of the Romanian democratic edifice with the help of nonconventional persuasive meanings through social media. • The study analyzes the role of TikTok in the 2024 Romanian presidential election. • A marginal candidate experienced rapid visibility growth through algorithmic amplification. • Coordinated inauthentic activity contributed to the large-scale diffusion of campaign content. • The case examines the Constitutional Court's unprecedented decision to annul the election. • The findings highlight risks of digital platforms for electoral integrity in contemporary democracies.