Please activate JavaScript!
Please install Adobe Flash Player, click here for download

Top10 Rankings 2013 Summary Report

Research Note: World Leader Rankings on Twitter December 2013 5 In less than three months he had garnered 1 million followers, in part due to Twitter’s popularity in Indonesia. (According to data from PeerReach, 6.5% of Twitter’s monthly active users are based in Indonesia). Throughout 2013 the president expressed his personal views through his Twitter account, including his candid reactions to the alleged wire-tapping by Australian intelligence agencies of his personal cell phone. In 2013, PRESIDENT ABDULLAH GÜL OF TURKEY increased his audience by over 1.5 million people to approximately 4.1 million followers. During the 2013 Turkish riots, Gül continued his use of Twitter including a supplemental English account. However, it was his colleague Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey that called Twitter and social media “the worst menace to society,” blaming it for the protests that rocked Istanbul. President Gül on the other hand, said, “If there are objections, there is nothing more natural than voicing them,” adding that “democracy is not just about elections.” QUEEN RANIA, THE QUEEN CONSORT OF THE KING OF JORDAN grew her account by 500,000 followers. As one of the most influential women in the Middle East, in 2013 she continued to use her Twitter presence to promote cross-cultural dialogue and foster greater understanding and tolerance, as a key figure behind the launch of several educational initiatives and the empowerment of women. Her husband, His Majesty King Abdullah II is now also represented on Twitter as Jordan’s Royal Hashemite Court. The account was established just before the king’s trip to Washington, D.C and has garnered 15,000 followers. The popularity of Jordanian leadership in the virtual world is secured with over 3 million followers across both accounts. RUSSIAN PRIME MINISTER DMITRY MEDVEDEV maintained his spot at #5 in 2013. “Thanks to everyone who reads this blog. There are more than 2 million of you!” Medvedev wrote in his Russian-language Twitter account @MedvedevRussia in September 2013. Joining Twitter in 2010, then-president Medvedev sought to demonstrate his high-tech credentials by being seen to actively engage with social media. His visits to Twitter’s headquarters and other U.S. tech companies inspired his interest to advance the development of the Skolkovo innovation complex, dubbed “Russia’s Silicon Valley.” He also continues to maintain the English account included in his total of 2.8 million followers. PRESIDENT CRISTINA FERNÁNDEZ DE KIRCHNER of Argentina moved up one spot to number six with 2.5 million followers. President Fernández rarely gives interviews or takes questions from reporters but often uses her Twitter account in place of those appearances. When two million Argentines flooded the streets in spring of 2013 to protest her government, President Fernández ended up sending more than 60 tweets in a single day. #3 #4 #5 #6

Overview