Voters can defy the algorithm

In front of Big Tech companies and the wonders of artificial intelligence, it is easy for ordinary people to feel they are unable to control their destiny.

The algorithms deployed by social media platforms, manipulate the direction of online discussions, push select information to the fore, create echo chambers that give the impression, something is bigger than it actually is or is non-existent. 

This complex reality makes it easy to assume voters are readily influenced by manufactured news and curated narratives peddled by those who have the money and knowhow to shape the algorithms to suit their agenda. 

Navigating the space becomes a daunting task, a minefield of disinformation, fake news and deception. It takes knowledge, courage and common sense to steer through the fog but this is not easy since the manipulation is sophisticated and silent. The difficulty is compounded when the manipulation is supported by a baying online crowd that gangs up on those who beg to differ, who can see through the haze and bullshit. 

These circumstances can easily lead to disengagement, disenchantment and resignation among voters. 

However, the US midterm elections have shown there is still hope in the human spirit, even when confronted by the tech giants and their algorithms. The blue wave that saw Democrats sweep up a majority in both houses of Congress and electing a diversity of people in different roles, shows that even technological manipulation has its limitations. 

There are various explanations for the midterm results. People may have voted against Donald Trump to protest his follies; others may have opposed Trump’s prolonged war in Iran and his cosying up to Russia’s Vladimir Putin; and yet, many more felt the need to voice their concern on a government that seems to have ignored the hardship caused by the rising cost of living. 

Irrespective of the millions of dollars more Trump and his cronies spent on advertising, voters saw through the fog and delivered a strong, hard-hitting message that the human spirit is stronger than the algorithm. 

Higher household costs are a reality that affects people more than any algorithm can influence; the inability to cover medical bills is a stronger determinant in voter behaviour than flashy advertisements; the experience of unemployment hits harder than anything else conjured in the boardrooms of Big Tech companies. 

This does not mean voter manipulation is not a reality or that its dangers should be minimised. To a smaller scale we witnessed last week a pathetic attempt by the Labour Party in Malta to convince us it had a leaked copy of Alex Borg’s budget reaction speech. It had nothing of the sort and in the press conference a minister and a backbench MP simply parroted broad statements that could easily be attributed to Borg anytime but which definitely did not come from a leaked speech no one saw. The attempt at deception was ludicrous. 

But even if voter manipulation in the age of AI and social media should not be underestimated and requires constant vigilance, it also has its limits as voters in the US, Serbia, Brazil and Hungary have shown this year. 

And this is not a question of ideological leaning. The same voter disgust that delivered a blow to Trump in the midterms and ended the 14-year rule of Aleksandar Vucic’s Serbian Progressive Party could easily propel somebody like Marine Le Pen to the presidency in France next year and give the far-right Vox Party in Spain a kingmaker role after elections later this month. 

The lesson everywhere is that politicians, who become complacent when in power eventually take voters for granted and ignore their needs. And at a time of international turbulence, voters that find no solace in their government, will rebel.

When the pain of higher food and medicine prices is real, when the degradation of public infrastructure is visible, when public hospitals are unable to cope because medical workers are overworked and underpaid, when communities no longer start to feel safe, when underprivileged groups are made scapegoats, when hope in a better life is extinguished, no algorithm or glitzy advertising campaign will be enough to convince voters to set aside their personal struggles. 

In Malta, the government has taken a conscious and strategic decision to shield Maltese families and businesses from the impact of international oil prices. It is not something to be understated. But it is precisely the growing size of that shield—almost €400 million this year and an estimate of €400 million in 2027—which requires other judicious actions to be taken that prioritise the most vulnerable and the middle class.