Political Campaign on Social Media: A Semiotic Study of the Electoral Victory of Regional Head Candidate Pair Dilla-Muslimin in Tanjung Jabung Timur through the Facebook Platform
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33019/.v8i1.455Keywords:
Campaign, Political Communicatioon, Regional Election, Semiotics, Social MediaAbstract
In contemporary electoral campaigns, social media has emerged as a central arena of political communication, reshaping how candidates build relationships with their constituents. This article investigates how the Dillah Hikmah Sari and Muslimin Tanja (Dilla-Muslimin) pair used Facebook as their main campaign channel during the 2024 Tanjung Jabung Timur Regional Election. Applying Roland Barthes' semiotic model, the study traces the denotative and connotative levels of meaning embedded within the campaign posts published on the 'Diminta Merata' Facebook page. Employing a qualitative, internet-based research design informed by Harold D. Lasswell's communication model, the findings show that the Dilla-Muslimin team deliberately combined visual symbols, political hashtags, slogans, and program-based narration to construct a unified public image built around fairness, closeness to the community, and a commitment to development. Rather than simply conveying information, the semiotic design of the campaign materials worked to shape voters' perceptions and encourage political participation. The eventual outcome—Dilla-Muslimin winning 58.63 percent of the valid votes—illustrates how a semiotically grounded, data-informed social media strategy can be effective at the regional government level.
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