One of the most commented topics on Twitter last Thursday (26), the hashtag “MulherescomBolsonaro” mobilized 209,780 tweets from 50,016 accounts between Thursday (26) 12 pm and Friday (27) 8 am, reaching the top of the trending topics of the social network. Such profiles are organized into two polarized groups: a group in favor of the hashtag, with 11,738 users (23.7%), and a group against the initiative, with 36,850 profiles (73.7%).

Map of interactions over #MulherescomBolsonaro on Twitter – from July 26 12 pm to July 27 8 am

Profiles against the hashtag (red)/Profiles in favor of the hashtag (blue)

Source: Twitter | Elaborated by: FGV DAPP

Although smaller in number of accounts, the group pro #MulherescomBolsonaro (in blue in the map of interactions) produced the greatest volume of posts, occupying 58.5% of the debate (122,786 tweets). In this group, one of the most retweeted posts was the official profile of Jair Bolsonaro (PSL), who thanked the support and claimed that women are important to the development of Brazil. The third most retweeted post is the profile of his son, Carlos Bolsonaro. In his opinion, the fact that the hashtag was on the first place would put in check the construction of the image of his father as a character contrary to women.

Posts defending a “right-wing feminism” (or criticizing a “left-wing feminism”) and approaching conservative agendas linked to the presidential hopeful stood out, including themes such as the defense of the “traditional family”, the demand for strict measures to combat violence and the so-called “gender ideology”.

Evolution of #MulherescomBolsonaro mentions on Twitter – from July 26 12 pm to July 27 8 am

Source: Twitter | Elaborated by: FGV DAPP

The group that criticized the hashtag (red), though more expressive in number of users, was less active in the debate, with 85,063 tweets, 40.55% of the total in the 32 hours studied. Here, the tone of the posts is more ironic, approaching the manifestation of female support to presidential hopeful with humor. The tweets with the greatest impact in this group also shared news links on Bolsonaro’s statements considered contrary to women, questioning if the advocates of the hashtag have forgotten such his words.

The analysis undertaken by FGV DAPP did not identify a significant presence of bots in the general debate on the hashtag.

The diffusion of #MulherescomBolsonaro also boosted #MulheresContraBolsonaro, which mobilized about 48,000 tweets in the period analyzed. Among the most retweeted publications are, again, mentions to Bolsonaro’s controversial speeches, as, for example, addressing the presence of women in the labor market. Due to these statements, users have accused the presidential hopeful and his supporters of sexism.

Difficulty accessing the female audience

Despite the engagement of the hashtag, on July 10, the Datafolha Institute released research that shows Bolsonaro’s difficulty in winning female votes, as well Ciro Gomes’, candidate for PDT. In the scenario with Lula (PT) in the running, Bolsonaro reaches 23% of the male electorate, but only 11% of the female electorate. Ciro has already 5% of the female electorate and 8% of the male electorate. Lula would be the candidate with most of the female electorate, 31% versus 29% of the male electorate. According to TSE (Brazilian Electoral Court), women now account for the majority of the Brazilian electorate, with 52%.