Trump and Swift Surpassed... Indian PM Modi Achieves 3rd Term, Surpasses 100 Million Followers

Indian Prime Minister Modi Surpasses 100 Million X Followers
Top Current Politician... Among Top 10 Overall Accounts
Influenced by Population, Communication Skills, and Diplomatic Use

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who successfully secured a third term this year, has surpassed 100 million followers on X (formerly Twitter). On the 14th (local time), the local media outlet Times of India reported, "Prime Minister Modi's X followers have exceeded 100 million," setting a new record. This number is higher than that of Donald Trump, the U.S. Republican presidential candidate (87.54 million), and pop star Taylor Swift (95.31 million), making him the most followed current politician worldwide. He also ranks within the top 10 among all accounts.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is making a 'V' sign with his hand.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Modi opened his X account in January 2009 while serving as the Chief Minister of Gujarat. Like other politicians, he has posted about schedules and policies and has broadcasted election rallies and speeches. The large number of his followers is likely influenced by the fact that he is the leader of India, the most populous country in the world with 1.5 billion people. His active communication with supporters in both English and Hindi is also understood to have contributed to the increase in followers.

Modi actively uses X for diplomacy as well. In 2016, during the Lunar New Year, he posted congratulatory messages in the languages of countries celebrating the holiday, including South Korea, China, Mongolia, and Vietnam, as well as in English, attracting attention. At that time, he posted a Lunar New Year greeting on X saying, "To the people of the Republic of Korea, Happy New Year! Wishing you a year full of good things."

Including former politicians, the political figure with the most followers on X is former U.S. President Barack Obama, who has 131 million followers. Among major politicians, U.S. President Joe Biden has 35.6 million, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has 7.41 million, and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has 830,000 followers. In South Korea, major politicians include President Yoon Suk-yeol with 48,000 followers, former Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung with 780,000, and former President Moon Jae-in with 2.18 million followers. Among all accounts, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of X, has the most followers with 187.7 million.