Ten months before the first round of the election, the digital networks Pocketnaristas have shown in recent weeks a show of strength, by organizing a successful campaign for the Brazilian president to be chosen in a popular vote as “Personality of the Year” by American magazine Time.
The result was announced last Tuesday (7), with 24% of the votes cast on the magazine’s website for Jair Bolsonaro (PL), well ahead of second place, former US president Donald Trump, who had 9%.​
Several celebrities, such as the American singer Britney Spears, competed in a poll that had no limit of votes per person, which helped to increase the margin obtained by Bolsonaro. One supporter said in one group that he had voted “about ten times”. There were about 2.16 million votes for the president.
The choice made by Internet users is different from that made by Time’s editors, which are considered more relevant. This announcement would be made on Monday (13). Even so, the popular choice was celebrated by Bolsonaro and his supporters, who are now pushing the publication to be endorsed by the editors.
Bolsonaro himself has already urged Time to “respect the election result.” In groups of pocketnaristas in applications such as WhatsApp and Telegram, this position is already being reinforced.
“So the candidate wins in the popular vote, but might not win? Can the Time jury give the victory to another one that was less voted? Well, now the TSE already knows where to be inspired for 2022, since it won’t have printed vote!” said a pocketnarista in the Telegram group Nova Direita, which has 7,840 members.
The pro-Bolsonaro campaign began to take shape on 22 November. Links began to circulate in groups, encouraging their members to vote and teaching how this could be done.
“Guys, let’s vote for Bolsonaro on Time. (Personal of the year). Give ‘no’ to everyone and just for Bolsonaro ‘yes’,” said a message that circulated in WhatsApp Conservadores Pelo Brasil on November 23, showing how vote for the president and reject other available options.
The next day, a message in the Liga Conservadora group encouraged the vote as a message to the left. “Bolsonaro is running for Person of the Year in Time Magazine! Have you ever thought about crying and gnashing of teeth? Make a left-handed cry, vote!!!”.
Similar messages circulated on several channels of the president’s support groups, such as a channel on the Telegram dedicated to motorcyclists, with 540 members. Since the beginning of the year, the president has been making motorcycles, in which he travels through cities accompanied by thousands of supporters in these vehicles.
After being announced, the victory in the online poll was celebrated in message groups and on social media. The fact was celebrated, for example, by pocketnarist influencers such as youtuber Bernardo Kuster, commentator Rodrigo Constantino and federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro (PSL-SP).
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