Why Miley Cyrus leads Time’s Person of the Year poll

Miley Cyrus has relentlessly twerked her way into the zeitgeist — and may be even into our hearts. And now she could be Time magazine’s Person of the Year 2013.

Time will soon unveil its pick, but the singer is currently leading the reader poll of the person who “most influenced the news this year for better or worse”.

As of Wednesday, Cyrus had 28 per cent of the vote. In comparison, Narendra Modi, the controversial chief minister of the Indian state of Gujarat, is currently in second place with 13.7 per cent votes. Edward Snowden, who is currently in third place, has only 10.8 per cent.

So how did it happen?

A team of hackers claims it found a way to rig the poll (users are required to vote through Twitter or Facebook). But Cyrus has spent the better part of the year leading the chatter on the place that matters most these days: the internet.

From her engagement to and subsequent split from Hunger Games hunk Liam Hemsworth to her transition from Disney princess to pop provocateur (the latter of which has really kept tongues wagging), Cyrus has been the subject of non-stop media attention. Her every move in 2013 has been tweeted and GIFed.

In her music videos, she indulges in booty-shaking ragers and weeps on construction equipment in the nude. In interviews, she skydives, parties all night and gets tattoos.

When she wins awards, she celebrates by getting high on the podium, something she may have also done when she scored a No 1 album earlier this year and announced a sure-to-sell out arena tour.

And let’s not forget her live showings.

There was that trashy train wreck of a performance at the MTV Video Music Awards that dominated the news cycle for weeks thanks to her incessant tongue wagging, crotch grabbing and one naughty foam finger that together hijacked Robin Thicke’s song of summer. News anchors and editors are still embarrassing themselves attempting to dissect the new-to-their-eyes concept of twerking.

She’s begged and pleaded for our attention for months and here it is, in all of its undivided glory. Enjoy it while it lasts, may be even until 2014.

The results of the Time poll will be revealed on December 6, and the magazine will announce its editor-selected person of the year on December 11.