Sentiment Analysis in the Political Dialogue: Case Study of the Candidates for the Presidency of the SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance party

Abstract

Sentiment analysis can offer valuable insights into the overall mood and emotional tone of a political discussion. Building upon a prior study conducted by the iMEdD (Incubator for Media Education and Development), which examined sentiments in political communication during the 2023 elections, our current study focuses on analyzing speeches delivered by the five candidates for the presidency of the party at the Continuous Congress of Syriza – Progressive Alliance on September 2nd, 2023. Through sentiment analysis, our objective is to determine whether the apparent positive tone in candidates' speeches reliably predicts electoral success and whether the topics addressed in each speech influence its overall sentiment. Our findings indicate that positive sentiment in political speeches does not necessarily correlate with electoral victory and that certain topics positively influence overall sentiment.