Every time a significant election occurs, whether it’s local, state-wide, or between candidates vying to become our next president, campaign imaging completely takes over. Political signs fill up yards and road medians, bumper stickers cover the back of cars, and it’s nearly impossible to avoid candidate commercials. Amongst the overwhelming advertising, majority of candidates blend into a sea of forgetfulness and for someone aiming to make change in their community, or an entire nation, “forgetful” is a fateful descriptor. As consumers, we often treat products and messages being sold like food, eating with our eyes first. While political candidates do not technically fall into the same category as the newest iPhone or pair of shoes, they still sell themselves and their platform, making it imperative to take visual communication and personal branding into consideration. This essay and accompanying multimedia project explore the question, “What role does visual communications play in creating a successful political candidate,” through font choice, colors and images, ultimately creating a cohesive, individual brand.
As a college student studying art and communications, I began to understand the value of visual elements in mass media. Years later, in my current position working in admissions, a career field many would consider far removed from mass media, I’m finding that the same concepts of visual communication apply. The goal of most companies and organizations, whether they’re a non-profit, a university, a hospital, a school, etc., is to sell a product or service, or to get a certain message across to audiences. For decades, visual communication has been an effective way to engage target audiences and create an entire brand image, maintaining loyalty with those same audiences. Dating back to cave paintings and hieroglyphics, visual communication has an expansive history that changed over time coupled with the evolution of technology and mass media. From the invention of the printing press in the 15th century to the rise of print media and advertising in the 19th century, visual communication has undoubtedly adapted to advances throughout history. According to the ITM group, “advances in printing technology made it possible to produce high-quality images and graphics, and advertisers began to use these tools to create eye-catching advertisements and posters” (ITM Group of Institutions, 2023). The invention and rise of the television introduced an entirely new way for advertisers to reach mass audiences and allowed for more experimentation with manipulating visuals. The 21st century brought in the dominance of the internet and eventually, social media platforms, changing the way many consumed media. This changed visual communication even more, opening the door for companies and organizations to reach audiences in ways they were never able to before. With the recent emergence of artificial intelligence and virtual reality, visual communication is expected to continue evolving. “These technologies offer immersive and interactive experiences that can enhance visual communication in various fields” (ITM Group of Institutions, 2023).
Despite often being ignored by researchers, visuals always made an impact in politics, whether intentional or not. While this analysis does not solely focus on political photography, it’s important to mention the history of photographs being used as catalyst to social change or to the detriment of a candidate. Giorgia Aiello (2023) uses the image of Nigel Farage in front of the Breaking Point poster in 2016 as an example of visuals being used in politics, even if they were never meant to send a political message. “The ‘political power’ of this image is to be examined not so much in relation to a pointedly strategic use of specific icons or motifs, but rather in relation to the cultural and historical meanings that have shaped the rhetoric that the image, combined with its layout and captioning, is able to communicate in an almost visceral manner” (Aiello, 2023). With the evolution of visual communication throughout history, its place in political campaigns also changed over time. As decades passed, campaigns, particularly presidential campaigns, now intentionally lean into utilizing visuals to establish their own brand or to tarnish an opponent’s image. Campaign staffs now often include full time graphic designers, photographers, and creative directors, along with design firms entirely dedicated to political design like Three(i) Creative Communications located in Memphis, Tennessee. In an interview with Nadia Sayej (2018), the firm’s content director Dominica Ghanem touches on how campaigns have visually become more candidate centered throughout time stating, “red and blue will always separate the two national parties, but over the past 10 to 15 years, we’ve seen a shift from branding being less about party and more about the candidate” (Sayej, 2018).
The 2008 Obama presidential campaign played a huge role in the first presidential election I was old enough to comprehend. I remember everything, from his cadence when speaking during debates to the constant headlines each week. Above all, the visual branding of his campaign stood out to me the most. Over a decade later, I can still recall the famous “HOPE” poster featuring Obama’s face front and center, covered in muted blues fading into a stark red. I remember his campaign logo, a red and blue circle filed with shapes that also depicted the idea of hope in a sense. His campaign ushered in a new era of visual identity in politics, a concept now seen more and more among current candidates. One particular campaign that followed suit by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stood out to me due to its impactful and curated personal branding. While she’s made a name for herself over time for a variety of reasons, her easily identifiable branding certainly played a significant part. Her campaign posters featured vibrant colors that deviated from the commonplace red, white and blue with bold typeface in complete uppercase. It perfectly mirrored the sense of urgency felt in her far-left platform calling for immediate action on pressing issues, ultimately becoming a direct reflection of who she is as a person and a politician. “Revolutionary” was a key word when Tandem, the design firm hired to create her iconic logo, began working on the project. “Alexandria is a candidate with a revolutionary spirit,” says Maria Arenas, one of the designers who worked directly with the firm founders on this project. “Voters heard it when she spoke. The branding is a reflection of her, which made it successful” (Budds, 2018).
Her logo, which features her last name slanted at an angle, appealed to Latinx voters throughout her district by including the inverted and upright exclamation points. “Political designers say her logo’s vibe has come to convey insurgency, youth, diversity, liberalism — and winning” (Goldmacher, 2021). A group of researchers found that “logo potency is a key factor that contributes not only to winning an election at home in the United States, but it also battles for global recognition” (Bible et al., 2016). Her signature upward lifted text was so influential that it’s even been duplicated by candidates across the country and around the world including a governor race in Kentucky, a bid for parliament in Europe and in city council races in her own district (Goldmacher, 2021). While they both hail from the same political party, AOC’s visuals clearly stood out next to her opponent’s, Jim Crowley. As the current incumbent, branding seemed far from a priority among his campaign staff. His posters featured a serif font and dull color choices that immediately dated the entire design and when placed side by side, Crowley’s immediately fades into the background, failing to capture necessary audiences. For new candidates without a loyal following, uniqueness is key. “In an increasingly visual world, candidates are looking to design to help them better communicate who they are and what they stand for” (Budds, 2018).
Stacey Abrams, despite losing to her opponent twice, also successfully created a strong, memorable personal brand. While her visuals did not include the same boldness and rebellious designs as AOC, they still represented her well as a candidate in a state much less progressive compared to New York City. Her logo features her name in a similar bold, sans-serif typeface with color choices that differ just enough from the traditional red, white and blue without creating jarring effect. While it still includes white, the blue background and lighter blue lettering below her name reflect an almost purple undertone, bringing in the red color in a completely different way. When studying the differences in “candidate self-presentation,” researchers found that women running on a democrat ticket are more likely to use colors beyond red, white and blue that are often synonymous with more conservative branding (Williams, Horsting, Ramirez, 2022). Abrams’s website also looks similar to AOC with a large image of her in the community and violet-blue coloring throughout. Her campaign visuals, though undoubtedly more subdued than those running in more progressive areas, fit perfectly with her personal brand created through undeniable passion and intelligence. On the other hand, Hillary Clinton’s logo used during her 2016 campaign was immediately met with harsh criticism after it’s unveiling on social media. Audiences described the logo as clunky, immature, corporate and cold, attributing its issues to the poor color and font choices. “When you look at successful logos — Nike, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola — you notice they tend to be pretty curvy. Most political campaigns’ logos do the same: think of the Obama design, for example, from 2008” (Haubursin, 2015). Obama’s logo also featured same red and blue, but in gradient as opposed to her “straight out of the tube” primary colors, similar to the way a child would go about choosing colors. Her unappealing visuals, reinforcing her less than warm personality, weren’t the entire reason for her loss to Donald Trump in the election. However, they serve as an important reminder of the impact visual communications have on the success of a political candidate. As Margaret Scammel (2015) puts it, “brand images are contested in the wider world; vulnerable to media representations; and shaped by citizen preferences, experiences, everyday media use, and interpersonal conversation.”
Whether you keep up with current events and vote in every election, or decide to remove yourself from the news entirely, it’s undeniable that politics affects everyone. As seen recently with various laws passed concerning LGBTQ+ rights in multiple states, politicians’ actions hold an immense amount of weight, potentially changing millions of lives. It’s useful to understand how these officials get elected, how they connect with and garner support from their target audience, and the role their campaign plays in these efforts. Especially in recent years, where we see more and more homegrown candidates with little to no political experience stepping out of their comfort zone to run for office, often inspired by their own lives being changed by detrimental political decisions. With the dominance of social media, influencers, film, and television, creative imaging is at an all-time high, and solidifying a personal brand when you want to sell something nowadays is essential. In addition, the quick, seconds-long video format, first popularized by Vine and now living on through TikTok and Instagram reels, along with the ability to “binge-watch” and entire season of show in one sitting, has massively affected our attention spans. While consumers these days do seem more likely to support something, whether monetarily or not, most expect a fully realized concept delivered as quickly as possible. Analyzing the visual communication aspects of successful, modern political campaigns provides insight into how to connect with an audience and covey your platform when you only have their attention for a couple seconds.
It’s also important to note the importance of the psychology behind design elements, particularly typography and color. For example, according to their study on the “emotion of color,” Patricia Valdez and Albert Mehrabian concluded that “darker colors are likely to elicit feelings that are similar to (or weaker variants of) anger, hostility, or aggression. Darker colors are also expected to elicit feelings that constitute components of aggression, anger, or hostility (e.g., displeasure, high arousal, or dominance) (1994).” Typography serves as an “integral part of the text that is automatically and unconsciously processed during reading” in addition to igniting “an interaction between the semantic content of the text and the visual meaning of the typography, which could reinforce the advertising message” (Amar, Droulers, Legoherel, 2017). This idea plays a fundamental role in how to reach a certain audience, tap into their emotions and their inherent wants and needs, and ultimately effectively convince them to select their name at the ballot box. Campaigns, a necessary part of elections, take over our televisions, our Twitter feeds, our mailboxes and more. The fonts, the websites, the logos, the colors, and the images all play an underrated role in the success of a political campaign and in turn, the resulting election of someone to office where they then possess the power to change lives.
Works Cited
Aiello, G. (2023). Visual communication has always been political. Journal of Visual Political Communication, 10(1), 7–16. https://doi.org/10.1386/jvpc_00021_1
Amar, J., Droulers, O., & Legohérel, P. (2017). Typography in destination advertising: An exploratory study and research perspectives. Tourism Management, 63, 77–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tourman.2017.06.002
Bible , G., Crain, M., Daizovi, C., al Habsi, H., & Zhao, B. (2016). Political Branding in U.S. Elections: Content Analysis of U.S. Presidential Campaign Logos from 1968-2016 [Review of Political Branding in U.S. Elections: Content Analysis of U.S. Presidential Campaign Logos from 1968-2016]. Gnovis Journal , 16(2), 25–47. https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1041823/gnovis_Spring2016_BibleCrainDaizoviAlHabsiZhao_PoliticalBrandingInUSElections.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
Budds, D. (2018, July 2). Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign design was a big, bold winning bet. Vox; Vox. https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/7/2/17519414/ocasio-cortez-campaign-design-campaign-posters-tandem-branding
Goldmacher, S. (2021, May 14). A.O.C. Had a Catchy Logo. Now Progressives Everywhere Are Copying It. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/us/politics/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-progressives-logo.html
Haubursin, C. (2015, April 13). Designers explain why nobody likes Hillary Clinton’s campaign logo. Vox. https://www.vox.com/2015/4/13/8406265/theres-a-reason-nobody-likes-hillary-clintons-campaign-logo
Sayej, N. (2018, November 1). The Power of Political Graphic Design on Elections. PRINT Magazine. https://www.printmag.com/featured/the-power-of-political-graphic-design-on-elections/
Scammell, M. (2015). Politics and Image: The Conceptual Value of Branding. Journal of Political Marketing, 14(1-2), 7–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/15377857.2014.990829
The Evolution of Visual Communication: A Look into the History and Future of the Field. (n.d.). ITM. https://www.itm.edu/blog/idm-the-evolution-of-visual-communication-a-look-into-the-history-and-future-of-the field#:~:text=The%20history%20of%20visual%20communication%20can%20be%20traced%20back%20to,ideas%20and%20stories%20to%20others.
Valdez, P., & Mehrabian, A. (1994, December). Effects of Color on Emotions. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General; 1994, Vol. 123, No. 4, 394-409.
Williams, A. M., Horsting, T., & Ramirez, M. D. (2022). What’s in a Campaign Logo? Exploring Differences in Candidate Self-Presentation through Campaign Logos. Journal of Political Marketing, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/15377857.2022.2040691
