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Platforms such as X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram matter because they can be used to reach billions of people for essentially no cost.

It’s a cost-efficient way for political candidate to reach potential voters — especially younger people who tend to be active on social media platforms.

Social media presences could decide elections as members of Generation Z, the generation that uses social media the most — as well as many others who rely on social media as a political source will likely vote for those who make good use of social media.

President Joe Biden, in his recently withdrawn bid for the presidency, is one of many candidates who have used social media to reach young voters.

According to The New York Times, the video-sharing app TikTok has become the most prominent source of news and political discourse, used by 56% of United States adults between the ages of 18 and 34.

Biden and his campaign attempted to address concerns from younger voters, such as his age, in an attempt to gain votes. But Biden’s TikTok account has a mere 300,000 followers — considered a very small number on TikTok.

While Biden’s decision to drop out extended far beyond his social media presence, his chances of winning and thus staying in the election could have increased if his popularity and outreach to Gen Z had been better.

After former President Donald Trump was the target of an assassination attempt, chaos erupted on social media platforms such as X, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and YouTube, including misinformation and conspiracies.

The Department of Homeland Security and the Secret Service have acknowledged the attempt was the result of a security breach. For some young voters, while Trump’s use of social media has been an attempt to rally Gen Z votes, it hasn’t quite had the viral moments and appeal of Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris.

Biden, after stepping down from his reelection bid, soon after supported Harris, who quickly captured the spotlight of social media and Generation Z in particular, with many memes and support from celebrities like pop star Charli XCX.

The most viral moment for Harris has been a clip of one of her speeches — “You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?� — along with her fans calling her fan base the KHive, a nod to pop star Beyoncé’s fanbase, the Beyhive.

It’s not for certain that social media is wholly responsible, but according to Politico, received its highest levels of new voter registrations in the election cycle in the two days after Biden dropped out — and most were those 34 and under.

With such a heavily politicized social media world, how are average citizens trying to navigate? According to the Pew Research Center, 34% of U.S. adults believe social media is good for democracy, while 64% disagree.

An additional 84% believe “access to the internet and social media have made people easier to manipulate with false information and rumors.�

Around 70% say the spread of false information online is “a major threat.�

Social media can be a powerful political tool to spread campaign information — but many citizens also add that it is a dangerous tool as it can also spread misinformation.

A report from Syracuse University in early July revealed political ads on sites such as Facebook and Instagram can often continue misinformation or scams.

This is not just an American problem, as Dutch researchers found X had plenty of misinformation before the European Union’s elections.

The rise of artificial intelligence adds another level of complexity, as many images on social media platforms are not labeled as AI images and can often be deep fakes.

Social media campaigning has become a primary tool for many candidates such as Harris.

And like the technology behind the platforms, the impact of social media continues to evolve.