Youth Politics on TikTok: Participation, Polarization, and Mobilization

Mutoni Uwase N.

Faculty of Business and Management Kampala International University Uganda

                                                                     ABSTRACT
The rapid emergence of TikTok as a dominant digital platform has transformed the landscape of youth political engagement by creating new spaces for participation, political expression, polarization, and collective mobilization. This study examines the role of TikTok in shaping youth politics through the interconnected dimensions of political participation, algorithmic visibility, content creation, civic engagement, and networked activism. It explores how TikTok’s participatory architecture enables young users to access political information, produce political narratives, engage in peer-to-peer discussions, and mobilize around social and political causes beyond traditional institutional channels. The study further analyzes how algorithm-driven content distribution, emotional framing, creator influence, and participatory formats contribute to both democratic opportunities and challenges. While TikTok provides opportunities for youth to bypass conventional media gatekeepers, amplify marginalized voices, and organize collective action, it also creates risks associated with misinformation, selective exposure, echo chambers, and political polarization. The platform’s influence on youth citizenship demonstrates a complex relationship between digital participation and offline political action, where online engagement may encourage activism but does not automatically translate into sustained democratic involvement. The study argues that TikTok represents a significant arena of contemporary political communication, requiring greater attention to media literacy, ethical platform governance, and inclusive digital participation frameworks to enhance informed youth citizenship and democratic engagement.

Keywords: TikTok politics; Youth political participation; Digital activism; Political polarization; and Social media mobilization.

CITE AS: Mutoni Uwase N. (2026). Youth Politics on TikTok: Participation, Polarization, and Mobilization. NEWPORT INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LAW, COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGES, 6(2):122-130
https://doi.org/10.59298/NIJLCL/2026/6.2.122130