My President, My Idol! : The K-Popification of Indonesia’s 2024 presidential candidates on X/Twitter

In the global expansion Hallyu wave of that has eventually reached Indonesia in various sectors, Korean pop culture has established its name in the country. From Korean idols and actors as local Indonesian brand ambassadors to the increasing number of Korean restaurants across the country, it looks like there is no stopping for this Korean wave. The integration of Korean culture in the form of K-Pop fandom engagement has also blended into fans political participation, specifically during the 2024 presidential election period. The three pairs of candidates uniquely tried to target K-Pop fans by imitating similar element of K-Pop fandom activities. Either it was done organically or planned thoroughly, this phenomenon was a distinctive experience compared to previous elections that tend to be tensed and focusing on older generation of voters. Due to the growing number of K-Pop fans that were formed during covid pandemic, which happened just a year after the previous presidential election, it is intriguing to see to what extent could K-Pop fandom culture be implemented and replicated into political issues as such. This thesis explores the effect of this phenomenon on Indonesian K-Pop fans, especially those who are active on X/Twitter as it was the main platform for this so-called K-Popification of presidential candidates. Qualitative primary data through interviewing ten related respondents were conducted to explain how and to what extent does K-Pop fans as the participant of fandom culture react to the phenomenon. Firstly, participants were asked about their digital activism on the platform as a K-Pop fan. In addition to that, fan labor is also elaborated to examine the fandom perspective towards this voluntary fan support. Based on the study, it can be concluded that the overall respondents perceived this phenomenon positively, especially the campaign strategy that was done organically and not intentionally using K-Pop fans and idols as political tools. As long as the K-Popified candidates do not explicitly mention a certain group or persona, it is considered acceptable. However, when an idol is used side by side directly with the candidate, the opinions shifted to seeing it as something unacceptable, as they are aware that this interest in K-Pop fandom is only a mobilized strategy that will happen during certain period of political event and will not fully affect the fandom positively in the long run.