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WHAT'S IN A NAME?
The importance of the name
As Donald Trump launches his reelection campaign for 2020, the Democrats are already up and running, with no less than
twenty-four candidates vying for nomination. To understand their differences, simply look at how they present themselves to
the greater public. Follow our guide to deconstructing the marketing policy of the various candidates.
C
ome, gather round and meet the 2020
Democratic candidates for president:
There’s Amy, Cory, Beto, Bernie, Pete. And Biden,
Inslee, Warren. Also Tim Ryan, Eric Swalwell
and Kamala Harris For The People. - Set aside the split over Medicare for All, or
which of the White House
contestants has the most
fully realized plan to fight
climate change. One of the
starker divisions in the
sprawling Democratic field is
how candidates present them-
selves — a friendly first name,
a no-nonsense last name, or
both first and last — in their
logos, on their campaign web-
sites and in other promotional materials. - Nomenclature won’t decide who wins the
crowded primary. A logo may say little, if any-
thing at all, about how an individual would
govern as president. But those seeking political
office and the consultants who advise them
often go to great — sometimes excruciating —
lengths deciding how best to brand a candidate
for strategic purposes. It’s no frivolous decision.
LOS ANGELES TIMES MARK Z. BARABAK
“A logo is the
thing most
people will see
over and over
again.”
CAMPAIGN LOGO
- “A logo is the thing most people will see over
and over again,” said Lisa Tucker, a strategist for
fou r-term California Rep. Swalwell. (“He’s not
Cher, or anything like that,” she said explaining
why plain-old “Eric” wouldn’t do.) “It will be on
all your materials, generally in every shot of your
candidate at every event,”
Tucker continued. “It’s some-
thing that you give a lot of
thought to because (visually)
it’s the most important thing
besides your candidate’s face.”
5. Professionals, of both the
political and marketing
stripe, agree on what makes
an effective campaign logo.
The best, they said, communicate the basics
— a name, of course, and some inkling of the
office a candidate is seeking — but ideally
project a good deal more. Successful political
branding reinforces individuality or what de-
fines a candidate, whatever that may be,” said
Susan Merriam, a brand strategist and de-
signer in New York, who co-founded the non-
partisan Center for American Politics and De-
sign.
“BERNIE” AND “KAMALA HAR-
RIS FOR THE PEOPLE”- Plain-old Bernie (as in the Vermont independ-
ent who battled Hillary Clinton in 2016 for the
Democratic nomination) speaks to the unvar-
nished nature of the candidate with the slouch-
ing posture, mussy hair and prickly manner. “It
fits Sanders’ personality in terms of who is he,”
said Mark Longabaugh, a media strategist for
the senator’s 2016 campaign. “He’s not a person
who’s particularly fussy about his appearance.
He’s focused on the issues and substance. He’s
not a pretentious politician. That’s one of his
strengths.” - Kamala Harris For The People — not “Kamala,”
not “Harris” — highlights the California senator’s
background as a state and local prosecutor, a
central part of her political identity, by quoting
the words she used when rising to speak in court.
“It was important to have that slogan ... visible
to people,” said Ian Sams, a campaign spokes-
man. - Separately, the typography and red-yellow-
blue color scheme of Harris’ logo pay homage to
the 1972 campaign of Shirley Chisholm, the first
black woman to run as a major-party candidate
for president, while at the same time reflecting
the bid by Harris, who is biracial, to make his-
tory as the first woman president. - to gather round to come together, sit or stand in a
group. - to set, set, set aside to ignore for the moment / split
division, difference of opinion / over about, on the subject
of / Medicare for All medical cover for the entire
population / White House contestant U.S. presidential
candidate / stark distinct / to sprawl to extend, spread
out / field here, list, party / no-nonsense serious / both
at the same time / material here, information, support. - crowded with many candidates / primary a
preliminary election by voters of a political party to select a
candidate for office / if here, or even / to seek, sought,
sought to try (to achieve) / office position, here
presidency / to advise to counsel / to go, went, gone to
great lengths to work very hard to accomplish sth /
excruciating extreme, unimaginable / to brand to name
/ purpose reason, objective / frivolous light, ea s y,
inconsequential. - over and over again constantly / term period in office
/ plain-old simply / [it] wouldn’t do would not work /
shot photo / to give, gave, given a lot of thought to to
reflect upon / besides apart from. - stripe field, domain / to make, made, made to
constitute / inkling vague idea / to project to imply,
suggest / a good deal a lot / to co-found to create an
organisation with another person / nonpartisan neutral,
impartial, apolitical. - as in with reference to / to battle to be a rival of /
nomination act of appointing, selecting an official
candidate for sth / unvarnished straight to the point,
direct / to slouch to bend forward / mussy messy /
prickly irritable / manner attitude / to fit to correspond
to / fussy to be concerned, anxious about / to be focused
on to be concentrated on / issue problem.- to highlight to emphasise, draw attention to /
background history, experience / prosecutor lawyer who
leads the case against a defendant, representing the state
/ to quote to cite, make reference to / to rise, rose, risen
to stand up, get up / spokesman person who speaks for
an organisation. - color scheme combination of colours / to pay, paid,
paid homage to to reference, relate to / to run, ran, run
here, to be a candidate in / while at the same time and,
simultaneously / bid attempt / to make, made, made
history to set a precedent, enter the history books.
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