Meltwater has released updated data on the 2025 Federal Election campaign, highlighting the growing role of social in shaping public discourse. The analysis encompasses one million posts from social and news media platforms between 14 March and 14 April 2025.

Public interest in the election remains high, although sentiment is predominantly negative. This negativity is largely driven by discussions surrounding the rising costs of living and the ongoing housing crisis. Power and energy have emerged as the leading topics, with 70,000 posts, 825,000 engagements, and a reach of 37 million.

The cost of living closely follows, with 64,700 posts, while discussions on the housing crisis have surged by 39% in the past week. Social media conversations are outpacing traditional news coverage in both volume and engagement, indicating a shift in how Australians are engaging with election-related content.

Peter Dutton and the Liberal Party have generated more social media activity than the Albanese government. Dutton's camp recorded 293,000 posts and 2.89 million engagements, compared to the Albanese government's 163,000 posts and 2.14 million engagements. Despite this, Anthony Albanese maintains a higher reach in conversations, with 229 million, attributed to his strong social media presence and collaborations with influencers.

Labor's online conversations are primarily focused on healthcare, which accounts for 25% of their discussions. Tax, the housing crisis, and the cost of living each account for 6.1% and 5.2% respectively. In contrast, the Liberal Party's narrative is centred on the cost of living (16.5%), power and energy (14.1%), and the housing crisis (12.3%).

Influencers are playing a significant role in engaging younger audiences. A notable example is Abbie Chatfield's post featuring Greens Leader Adam Bandt DJ-ing, which attracted 22,000 engagements and a reach of 79,000. Other viral posts include Pauline Hanson's Facebook post on immigration, garnering 49,000 engagements, and a satirical Instagram post by The Betoota Advocate, which received 20,000 engagements.

Meltwater's Election Centre is a custom solution providing real-time insights from news, social media, and broadcast into a single dashboard. It tracks trending themes, key issues, political share of voice, sentiment shifts, and party reputation across news and social channels.

VP ANZ at Meltwater, Ross Candido, said, "Australians are showing up in force online this election, but it's clear from the data that emotional fatigue and scepticism are running high. What we're seeing is a real shift-not just in what voters care about, but in how and where they're engaging. Influencers and social-first content are driving the conversation, far outpacing traditional media."

He added: "For brands and political campaigns alike, tools like Meltwater's Election Centre are critical to understanding these evolving dynamics, identifying the right channels, tailoring content that actually cuts through, and monitoring any unintended association with misinformation or content that doesn't align with the brand's or political campaigns' narrative and values."