GOP Debate 2015 Social Media Response: Donald Trump, Marco Rubio Top Facebook, Twitter Engagement

By Michael Oleaga Aug 07 2015, 16:21 PM EDT

Following the first Republican presidential debate on Thursday, different campaigns claimed victory, but social media may prove who was the most talked about candidate.

The Technology and data company Engagement Labs released the top performing Republican presidential candidates on Facebook and Twitter. On both social media platforms, the top GOP candidate differed.

Based on Engagement Labs' data, real-estate mogul Donald Trump received the greatest "engagement, impact and responsiveness" scores on Twitter after Thursday night's debate. Trump, however, was already dominating on Twitter. Engagement Labs also gathered data prior to the debate, and Trump was also the top performer.

Staying within Twitter, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., also maintained the second-place position in both pre- and post-debate. The third popular performer was a new name. In the pre-debate scores, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., placed third, but following the debate, his engagement rates declined. Instead, Ohio Gov. John Kasich saw some growth and landed on third place. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush also saw his engagement, impact and responsiveness scores increase and finished fourth, ahead of Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

Considered as the winner of the 5 p.m. GOP debate, former HP CEO Carly Fiorina grew from ninth place leading up to the debate to sixth place after Thursday evening.

Switching to Facebook, Rubio's social media presence improved compared to Twitter. Prior to the debate, Rubio ranked third, but after his performance, he placed first. In the post-debate social media scores, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee placed second, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson placed third and Paul finished fourth.

Trump did not do as well compared to his Twitter presence. Trump placed sixth, behind Cruz.

Engagement Labs noted that were was an overall increase in activity among the Republican candidates' social media channels.

"The social media vote can shape the election results. Social media is an extremely effective way to engage voters whether during prime time or at off times," Engagement Labs CEO Bryan Segal said. "Social media is always on, and candidates are using these channels to drive loyalty, share news, opinion and content, as well as to influence voter behavior. It is personalized mass media."

While the Republicans attracted viewership and social media attention, the Democrats were not far behind to comment on the debate's aftermath.

"During both debates [on Thursday], we saw more of the out of date and out of touch policies that we're used to seeing from these Republican candidates," Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said. "Among the biggest losers of tonight's debate were American women, who were attacked at every turn."

Wasserman Schultz stated that the Republican candidates failed to provide income inequality solutions and no mention of college affordability, equal pay, minimum wage or the Voting Rights Act, which marked its 50th anniversary on Thursday.

"Today's Republican presidential candidates proved that the GOP is solely focused on taking us backwards with policies that cut taxes for the wealthy and leave the middle class behind," Wasserman Schultz said. "Americans are going to ask themselves, which one of the candidates on that stage will look out for me? The answer is clear: not a single one of them."

Be part of the conversation and provide your opinion on this topic for Latin Post's "¿Que Dices?" series. Email your video or written response to opinion@latinpost.com and it may be shared in future "¿Que Dices?" content.