Cypriots have elected 24-year-old Phidias Panayiotou, a popular YouTuber, as an independent member of the European Parliament. The young man, who has 2.6 million subscribers on YouTube, gained fame through videos featuring his encounters with celebrities such as American billionaire Elon Musk and occasionally organizing unconventional cooking competitions. Panayiotou, who describes himself as a "professional mistake-maker," lacks political experience and does not have prior political affiliation. However, he launched a campaign urging young people to vote in the elections held on Sunday, where he garnered 19.4% of the votes, marking his unexpected win as a rejection of traditional political parties.
The young MP, who is also active on Instagram and TikTok, told Cypriot public television that "what happened is shocking, a miracle; parties should see this as a warning that they need to update their programs and listen to the people." The news site Philenews described his rise as a "resounding" message to parties and a step towards "changing the political landscape." The site noted, "The young YouTuber and social media user managed to flip the tables with a non-political speech, without political stances, and without knowledge—which he admits himself—of the European Union."
Observers believe that electing someone without a detailed program reflects a disconnect between traditional parties and voters, highlighting their failure to understand the impact of social media. The conservative DISY party received 24.8% of the votes, followed by the communist AKEL party, which lost one of its seats in the European Parliament with 21.5%. Voters also chose a member of the far-right ELAM party to represent them in the European Parliament, part of a broader rise of the far right within the EU. Thanks to its anti-immigration platform, the far-right party won just over 11% of the votes, securing its first-ever European seat.
Panayiotou, the son of a Greek Orthodox priest, leveraged his social media presence to encourage young people to vote. Among his most popular online content are videos where he exchanges hugs with 100 celebrities, spends a week in a coffin, and trains with Chinese Shaolin kung fu masters. Cyprus, an EU member state, has a population of approximately 900,000, with 683,432 registered voters. Voter turnout was 58.86%, compared to 45% during the 2019 European elections, a rise that observers attribute partially to what they call the "Phidias factor."
