THE two prime ministerial candidates – incumbent Najib Razak and his mentor-turned-nemesis Dr Mahathir Mohamad – are amping up the digital and social media war as May 9 draws near.

The ruling Barisan Nasional looks to have the edge in the digital battle, though the gap is narrowing since campaigning officially kicked off on April 28, said Singapore’s Straits Times, today.

Najib and Dr Mahathir are frequently seen online; their Facebook Live streams draw audiences that number in the tens of thousands. Collectively, the two of them attract more social media comments than all the major parties put together, said the report.

According to social media analytics firm Digimind, Najib is mentioned more times than all the other main party chiefs put together on social media, and he also has the highest percentage of positive mentions.

“Najib Razak’s 53% share of voice… can be attributed to discussions surrounding the dissolution of Parliament, the passing of a fake news law which was interpreted as an attempt to curb free speech ahead of elections, switching from rice to quinoa, and Bloomberg’s interview on the 1MDB controversy in late April,” Digimind said in a report sent to The Straits Times.

But the latest data shows the 93-year-old Dr Mahathir is fast catching up.

While Najib grabbed 51% of mentions up till April 28, his share has dropped to 45%. More tellingly, positive comments n the April 29-May 4 timespan are down to 49% from 52% previously.

From a 28% share before April 28, Dr Mahathir is now snagging 38% of mentions. Half of the comments mentioning him are positive, up from 48%.

BN has admitted to being slow to catch up in the digital arena, which was largely dominated by the opposition in the past two elections.

The ruling coalition lost the popular vote in 2013, but clung on to power with 133 seats in Parliament. – May 5, 2018.