Berlusconi protagonist in Tik Tok of the Italian electoral campaign

The social network of young people has been the great surprise of this campaign for the leader of Fuerza Italia, who definitively unifies his communication screensHe defends that his role within the coalition provides moderation and political experienceAt 85 years old, Silvio Berlusconi is the leader of the oldest party in the political field of the next early elections in Italy, which will be held this Sunday, September 25. Although he has recovered after the health ailments of recent months, including COVID, he cannot afford the hustle and bustle that other politicians have experienced these days crossing the country from north to south. But his presence in the public debate has not been compromised for this reason, far from it. Some party members have decided to bring a cardboard replica of the cavaliere to count on his presence. “He also wanted to come,” senator Licia Ronzulli joked with a photo at a Genoa rally with the cardboard representation of Berlusconi. Without neglecting his presence in the public and, in this case, electoral debate, the former premier left the number two of Fuerza Italia Antonio Tajani the task of continuously moving through debates, events and rallies, which require a specially tight. Beyond the cardboard replica, Berlusconi’s presence in the campaign has been demonstrated on the media front, one of his strengths since he began in Italian politics in the 1990s. Where he responds, the interviews he goes to, the discussions he participates in generate interest and conversation. The cavaliere still moves like a fish in water at a communicative level, an element always linked to his figure, an aspect that he has not neglected in these weeks. Experts call it a “guarantor of media attention” and it means that all the screens where Silvio Berlusconi appears generate reactions, comments, audience and views -whether positive or negative-. But this time he has not only been present on television or radio, this time he has wanted to go one step further. Referring to what is often said that almost anything goes during the electoral campaign, this time the audacity has also been valid for social networks. The main political leaders have landed on Tik Tok trying to connect with the youngest age groups -they represent 4.7 million voters-, who will vote, in many cases for the first time, in these elections. And there Berlusconi has been the same as always, so much so that he has admitted with irony that he is envious of the public he addresses, because of his youth. He landed with a video that in a few hours became viral and now has more than 9 million views. With a humorous tone, he renamed the famous social network with the name of ‘Tik tok tak’ and spoke to an audience, the youngest, about which he says he cares more than the other parties. Although the language was slightly different, in all the videos that were later uploaded to the application, Berlusconi’s own brand was recognized. Even his political opponents acknowledge that he keeps pace with him at 85 years old. Matteo Renzi, leader of Italia Viva, said: “Berlusconi on Tik Tok? Inimitable. He has beaten me with 10 million followers compared to 1 ”, he explained, although he later said that he was convinced of beating him in terms of votes this Sunday the 25th -the so-called Third Pole, experts warn, will be the great competitor of the FI-. In his “career in Tik Tok” he has also left, in addition to his traditional jokes, some pills of his most recurrent themes such as pensions or the thousand euros to the young people who have starred in his campaigns for decades. Although this is the case, the party he leads, Fuerza Italia, is fifth in the polls -which give him 6.7%-, but his role has not been oriented to the first ranks for a long time, which he has already occupied in up to 3 governments as prime minister. Now his role within the center-right coalition, with the undisputed leadership of the right-wing Giorgia Meloni and with Matteo Salvini stumbling, is that of a “wise man.” This aspect can be seen in the distribution of the so-called “single-member schools”, those in which a single party wins and directly obtains the seat. They are carried out, among other criteria with the polls, in the center-right coalition Berlusconi’s party has obtained an over-representation which means, as explained in a colloquium with the foreign press by the professor of Political Science at the Luiss Lorenzo di Sio University, that the cavaliere, although less present than his partners, still represents a fundamental role. At his home in the Appia Antica area of ​​the Italian capital, he hosts the meetings between the conservative leaders and from there he also tries to express a clear image: he represents moderation towards his coalition partners, the Brothers of Italy and the League, more radical in their speech. Berlusconi now warns Italians about the fate of a center-right government that is not “liberal, Christian, pro-European and Atlantic.” The center-right leader is presenting himself as a candidate for the Senate at the single-member college in Monza, the city where he has led the football team to the A series. This, in addition to presenting himself as the head of the list in five regions, thus guaranteeing that, be it by one way or another, this legislature is once again within the Italian Parliament. It is not guaranteed, however, that popularity on networks will turn into votes, as Vincenzo Emanuele, Professor of Political Science at LUISS, warns, but he explains that the figure of Berlusconi is one of the few that, apart from everything, generates sympathy, whether to their voters than to those who are at their political antipodes. He represents the great strength of his party, the doubts, explains the expert, will be about the leadership of Fuerza Italia in the future.