How Political Ideology Impacts Political Brand Image: Analysis of the 2016, 2018, and 2020 Elections

The U.S. presidential elections of 2016 and 2020 have both been characterized as “An Election like No Other” (Goodman 2020; Smith 2016) unparalleled to previous ones. The 2016 election saw an outsider, not an established politician, win the support of a major political party and eventually the presidency. The 2020 election was influenced by a once in a century pandemic that diminished all traditional election issues and greatly affected the nature of campaigning. This research examines whether political ideology played an invariant and stable role in shaping the brand image of the presidential election candidates. Analysis of 2016, 2018, and 2020 data sets identifies ten aspects of political ideology, finds that they are a significant determinant of the brand image of candidates in both elections, and concludes which aspects are stable versus unstable. The findings will help political marketers and researchers to create the strong brand image of political candidates, providing insights into the future U.S. presidential as well as overall election strategies.