Newcomers in politics: A thematic analysis of 2023 Malaysian State Election candidates’ TikTok content

Abstract

In Malaysia, the 2023 State Election was held on August 12, 2023. This election only involved six states, namely Selangor, Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Negeri Sembilan, and Penang. It also had a large number of candidates from different backgrounds. Among them were new candidates nominated by their respective parties. New candidates are also known as a “political newcomers”. These newcomers were of various backgrounds, including artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, and academicians. All of them presented distinctive manifestos and viewpoints that was shared on social media. In this context, this research aims to examine the content uploaded by four different newcomers in their personal social media account, which is TikTok. A total of 173 uploaded contents were analysed utilising descriptive analysis and thematic analysis. Based on the analysis, six different themes emerged reflecting the political newcomers’ background including education, social welfare, economy, health and sports, corruption, and safety/security. Three major themes: education, social welfare, and health & sports stood out as the most significant and relevant to research objectives, highlighting the issues that resonate most with voters. The study underscores the significance of social media, particularly TikTok, as a powerful tool for disseminating content on critical national issues. By focusing on education, social welfare, and health & sports, political newcomers tapped into the concerns and aspirations of the electorate, in the hopes of gaining their support and eventual votes.