Sinn Féin 'dominant' political party on social media in last two years

People Before Profit and the Social Democrats saw significant increases in social media followers, according to survey

Sinn Féin social media reaches 934,545 users, with the other parties combined only reaching 784,761.

Sinn Féin is the "dominant party" on social media in the last two years — but the new Fine Gael leader has more reach on TikTok than every other political party combined, according to new research.

While Sinn Féin has more followers across the major social media platforms — X, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Threads, and TikTok — than all other parties, Simon Harris's posts reach the most people on the latter.

Mr Harris also boasts 542,700 followers across all platforms, second across the entire Dáil only to outgoing Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (788,600).

All political parties are increasing their focus on social media ahead of the local and European elections in June, according to new research by Mulley Communications.

Damien Mulley of Mulley Communications noted there was now more of a focus on video content on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube.

He explained: "With upcoming local, European and general elections, all parties are ready to use social media to get their message out on platforms from the now very old Facebook, to the trendy TikTok to the brand new Threads from Meta. Having a presence and using it strategically is another matter.

"A big difference we've noticed from the last general election and the last few years is the rapid move away from text and images on social media to video first and with it a significant rise in direct-to-camera pieces backed up with captions.

When broken down in to the party followings, Sinn Féin boasts more followers than all of its opposition — with Mr Mulley saying they are "dominant."

Its social media reaches 934,545 users, with the other parties combined only reaching 784,761.

Sinn Féín experienced the highest follower growth in the past two years, adding 439,245 followers (up 87%) compared to Fine Gael’s 14,986 (up 15.2%) and Fianna Fáil’s 12,353 (up 13.2%).

The Green Party showed the least growth of any political party, adding only 3,310 followers.

When focusing purely on 2024, Sinn Féin leads on both Facebook and X, and while that also applies to Instagram, the level of growth since 2022 has been slow.

By comparison, People Before Profit and the Social Democrats saw significant increases.

Both Sinn Féin and the Social Democrats have seen major leaps in engagement on TikTok, with Mary Lou McDonald's party also having a "highly effective strategy" with its growth on YouTube.

Simon Harris has a 'strong presence' on the newer social platforms, with a "robust online" strategy in place. Picture: Grainne Ni Aodha/PA Wire

Mr Mulley noted: "The Social Democrats, despite being smaller in follower count compared to some of the larger parties, have shown impressive growth rates, especially on Instagram and TikTok, suggesting a successful engagement strategy with younger audiences."

Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have shown more moderate growth compared to the others, with Fine Gael making notable strides on TikTok, which could indicate an evolving strategy to capture a younger demographic.

This is where Mr Harris's rise onTikTok and Instagram could be beneficial. 

Mr Harris has a "strong presence" on the newer social platforms, with a "robust online" strategy in place.

The analysis reveals a "diverse landscape of social media engagement among Irish political leaders", Mr Mulley notes.

"Richard Boyd Barrett and Paul Murphy have shown particularly strong growth on Instagram and TikTok, platforms used by younger audiences, suggesting their messages are resonating well with this demographic. 

"Mary Lou McDonald and Leo Varadkar continue to maintain the highest numbers on Facebook and Twitter, highlighting their established presence and ongoing engagement with a broad audience."