One year in, Justin Trudeau makes his mark on social media

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference at the 71st Session of the UN General Assembly at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatick

It’s been one year since Justin Trudeau was sworn in as the prime minister of Canada.

In that time, he has embraced social media and created a strong presence online, especially on Twitter.

Trudeau now boasts an impressive 2.6 million followers, 1.2 million of those gained after being sworn in as PM.

The prime minister is now one of the most followed world leaders on Twitter and is one of the few with more than two million followers.

Twitter Canada's Jennifer Hollett says the increase in followers can be attributed to Trudeau and his communications team being social-media friendly and tech-savvy.

"Justin Trudeau has really established his presence on Twitter as an international leader," Hollett says. "He’s quick to embrace new technology and by doing so, he speaks a new language, one that connects with young people and the old."

She adds:"He’s a natural on Twitter. Whether that is how he’s tweeting, how he’s engaging with Canadians, his use of photos or emojis, he really understands digital.”

According to Twitter Canada, Trudeau has sent out hundreds of photos and videos during this past year. In fact, since joining the social media platform in March 2008, Trudeau has sent 3.3 times more tweets then former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

The prime minister also uses social media to connect on a more personal level with Canadians.

Hollett says this means more Canadians feel they can relate to Trudeau and many feel they can interact with him on a daily basis.

“(Canadians can) see what he does day to day as well as tweet at him, ask questions, provide feedback," says Hollett. "You’re a tweet away from the prime minister and that’s exciting. It’s been exciting to see how Justin Trudeau and his team have been using Twitter to create engagement and give voice to Canadians."

The prime minister's commitment to Twitter seems to have paid off. Here's a look at some of his well-known followers.

World leaders:

Notable Canadians include:

source: Twitter Canada

Here’s a look at the top 5 most retweeted tweets sent out by the prime minister this year.

And finally, while the prime minister tweets a lot, there's also many people tweeting at him. Here are some of the most popular emoticons posters used while mentioning the prime minister this year.