How much weight does a candidate’s image have on an election outcome? It’s a basic assumption that candidate’s appearance and behavior have an effect on how voters perceive them and in turn, vote for them. Little research has ever been done on this topic to support this theory however. One scholarly article titled “The Image and the Vote: The Effect of Candidate Presentation on Voter Preference” provides a great analysis on the importance of voter image. According to the article “How a political candidate looks and speaks has a significant impact on that candidates chances of being elected – style shapes image and image affects the vote. These claims are political truisms of the television era. Election commentary invariably focuses on candidate’s images and their image- making strategies. A good example of this is provided by the news commentary of the 1984 democratic president primaries. Attention centered on the role of image – the strength of Gary Hart’s image and the weakness of the images of the initially more prominent Alan Cranston and John Glenn”. While there is not substantiated research on the subject of voters opinions and a candidates image there is definitely a correlation between the two. For more information on the subject I recommend reading the full article at http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2111296?uid=3739920&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21101360820247
Monthly Archives: October 2012
Rain or Shine
With the recent party conventions taking place outside the presidential candidates were secretly celebrating. While giving their speeches in the rain may not seem like the most glamorous or presidential scenario it may actually be preferred by some candidates. Candidates have always been fans of foul weather; nothing says dedication like standing out in the cold, rain, snow, or wind and giving your speech anyway while still trying to look presidential. Both Romney and Obama were photographed giving their speeches in the foul weather although their style for the rain was very different. Obama was seen wearing just a simple button down and Romney wore a more rain appropriate over coat. While their different styles may not have said anything special about what they stand for the fact that they stood out in the rain does. Each candidate was trying to show that they are the most dedicated candidate. It doesn’t look good when a candidate reschedules a speech because of a little bit of rain. We will have to see how this demonstration of dedication pays off for each of the candidates in the coming weeks.
photos courtesy of : The Caucus and Angryblackwomancronicles
Traditional Fashion
While the current First Lady may be known for her fashion forward sense of style Mrs. Romney is definitely known for her more conservative sense of style. Romney portrays a more traditional first lady look. I believe each woman’s look reflects each of their husband’s respective views. The Obama’s more liberal forward thinking views versus the Romney’s more conservative views. Recently I ran across a photo collection of some of Romney’s recent outfits and you can click on the link below to view it.
The War on Arms
It’s no secret that the First Lady has amazing upper arms and has made it quite popular among american women to want to show off their arms as well. But should they be? Most women do not have the same toned arms that Mrs. Obama does and many of them are upset about it. In an essay recently written on the subject the author Joyce Purnick was quoted saying “The first lady has made it unacceptable for women to appear in public with covered arms… Those bare, toned, elegant arms of hers have spawned an epidemic of sleevelessness, exposing arms, arms, arms, and not all of them toned and elegant.”
Biker Biden
With all the negative media attention Mitt Romney has been facing lately for comments made this past month, the Republican candidates images have been pretty damaged. But what about the Democratic candidates images? One thing’s for certain, they definitely haven’t been getting the same type of attention as the Republicans.
The Democratic vice presidential candidate, Joe Biden was recently seen with a “Biker Chick” getting quite comfy on his lap. This is just one of many strange slip ups the candidate has made in the past. It seems as though his bizarre behaviors such as allowing questionable looking biker women to sit on his lap because “there weren’t any chairs available” or dropping the F-bomb when congratulating the president on passing Obama care receive noticeably less bad media attention than comments made by the republican candidates. And let’s not forget a few years ago when the Vice President said “You cannot go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin’ Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent…. I’m not joking”. While the media spends most of its time criticizing the republican candidates and does not acknowledge how equally strange some of the democratic candidates behaviors are.
The Art of Perception 