Secondly, whilst online campaigning based on social media platforms may be novel in form and impact, in the opinion of the Venice Commission its use should still be subject to the general rules on campaign finance and transparency. The role of the judge considering election matters is to decide whether a candidate’s online campaigning – and receiving campaign support from third parties, be it online or not – has violated these rules, and in relation to the consequences of such a violation, whether the violation is so significant that it may have influenced the outcome of the election.