News Consumption Behaviors among Voters in Capital's Gubernatorial Election: Evidence in Bangkok, Thailand

Abstract

Understanding voter behavior, specifically how they follow local election news and information, remains a crucial aspect of the study of political communication, particularly in the age of digital technology. This study examines how voters follow such news and information by collecting data via an online questionnaire from 400 voters who participated in the 2022 gubernatorial election of Bangkok, a special administrative area and the capital city of Thailand, and categorizing them by socioeconomic and political variables. Results indicate that voters often follow relevant news and information, primarily through social media. The channels with the lowest popularity are radio and print media. Social, economic, and political variables are the determinants that determine behavioral variations. Males, for instance, are more likely than other genders to follow the news, but females are more likely to watch television, attend seminars, and engage in conversation. Other genders rarely consume print media. Therefore local election candidates who wish to interact with them should focus on social media. To accurately and successfully communicate political messages to target groups during a local election via media, it is vital to understand the behaviors of each voter group, which may have various requirements.