Campaigns throughout history

Political campaigning surrounds us whether we are aware of it or not. It is in video advertisements, it exists in small coffee shops and, recently, it is all over social media.

However, campaigning did not always come directly from the candidate themselves. In the past, local supporters would host events on a candidate’s behalf during presidential elections. Presidential nominees felt it was inappropriate to personally ask voters to vote for them, so their local supporters used all accessible media to familiarize the public with the candidate. Supporters achieved this through rallies, parades, newspapers, prints, cards and organized speeches.

In addition to images of their own faces, candidates needed something to represent their ideas. Animals became symbols of parties’ values and beliefs beginning in the mid-19th century. Campaigning would typically relate to trends and pop culture references of the time period. For example, the Woodrow Wilson campaign used cartoons and songs in the early 20th century to help people understand the candidate’s political messaging and to get them involved.

“Campaign songs written about candidates fit right into a culture where singing was popular,” The New York Historical Society said in an exhibit about the origins of modern campaigning.

Although campaigning began around 1860, the basics of advocating remain the same today. Songs, which would have been appealing to the common citizen in the past, have evolved into shorter promotional videos for audiences of all ages. Unlike purposefully organized committees, a plethora of unpaid and voluntary young adults have used social media to create fast-paced and entertaining edits of the presidential candidates, with both serious and humorous tones. A wide variety of content such as songs, photos, slang terms and memes have been employed in these videos.

This type of video content, also known as edits, are a large component of campaigning in the age of social media. Filling up the social media feeds of a significant portion of the population, edits communicate what a candidate imagines for the country, and thus have the potential to influence others. They also are widely accessible and do not take long to watch, which can increase the view count.

“One of the most popular examples has amassed more than 2 million views and more than 500,000 likes,” Mikayla Denault said in an interview with CBS News when referencing the BRAT X Kamala TikToks. “The tag #kamalaharris is also trending on TikTok, with more than 101 million views and 9,000 posts in the last seven days.”

Creators are hopeful that as more people view the promotional political content on social media, more will be inspired to create some themselves, ultimately creating a positive feedback loop in campaigning. While in the past it might have been more difficult for supporters of presidential candidates to persuade others to start campaigning, recent technological advancements have made the average person more likely to join a movement and use everyday tools to show support. Social media has given more people than ever before access to tools that can be used to promote candidates and political positions.

“By running ads on various types of media, candidates can reach audiences that otherwise may not have been paying attention to the election and build name recognition, highlight important issues and call attention to the shortcomings of their opponents,” Lata Nott said to the American Bar Association.