Chapter 10: Influence of Digital Reputation on Voting Behavior in the Contemporary Political Landscape: A Bibliometric Analysis

In the current digital age, political perception is increasingly shaped by online narratives rather than governance performance. Today, it is a crucial aspect of a political candidate’s competencies to learn to maneuver his or her messaging through online spaces among the masses. This study examines the interplay between digital reputation and governance in modern elections, investigating whether online presence and online engagement, outweigh actual administrative competence in influencing electoral outcomes. We employed bibliometric analysis to provide insight into the significant trends related to keywords, authors, and the most cited works in this domain. We have summarized scholarly works on the aforementioned subject to understand to the extent to which social media influences voters’ behavior. It was observed that the relationship between the digital reputation of a political candidate, governance issues on the ground, and electoral response remains complicated. Additionally, there is a lack of definitive evidence that would unequivocally suggest that a strong digital image outweighs governance realities in determining voter choices. This study highlights the need for further empirical research to dissect the evolving role of digital influence in modern democratic processes.