Reflecting on Trump's Leadership Lessons
In the upcoming Bundestag election, democratic parties in Germany are facing a challenge similar to the one that the Republican party in the United States faced in 2016: embodying change while also being responsible for current politics. As the U.S. election campaign provides valuable insights, it's crucial for democratic parties in Germany to learn from the strategically smart approaches of the Trump campaign, not least to successfully counter populists.
One of the key strategies that the Trump campaign employed was the use of repetition and message consistency. By repeatedly emphasising simple, emotionally resonant messages, the campaign effectively embedded beliefs among supporters, leveraging psychological effects such as the illusory truth effect. Democratic parties could adopt a similarly disciplined and repetitive communication style to ensure their key messages resonate and are remembered.
Another strategic insight from the Trump campaign's "Closing Argument" ads is the importance of crafting a compelling, positive vision. Trump framed his campaign as a strategy of "reclaiming greatness," appealing to voters’ desire for identity and restoration of a perceived lost status. Democratic parties should respond not only by critiquing Trump’s approach but by articulating an inspiring and concrete alternative vision for the future that motivates and builds hope beyond simply opposing Trump.
The Trump campaign also addressed economic and social anxieties, connecting with underlying fears and cultural concerns. Democratic campaigns can learn to more deeply understand and empathetically address the real concerns of working-class and middle-class voters, presenting policies that offer tangible improvements rather than abstract critiques.
Moreover, the Trump campaign engaged with emerging political realities, recognising the "old world is dying" and projecting himself as the champion during times of upheaval. Democrats should similarly engage with transformative themes—such as technological change, climate crisis, and social justice—in ways that feel both urgent and achievable.
Mobilisation around urgent stakes was another key strategy employed by the Trump campaign. By using stark framing about threats (e.g., election fraud claims), the campaign was able to mobilise its base intensely. Democrats can learn the importance of clear, consistent messaging that highlights high stakes to drive voter turnout and activism, while maintaining message credibility.
The Trump campaign's "Closing Argument" ad for undecided voters showcased the breadth of Trump's coalition, while the ad for die-hard Trump supporters set a grim tone and emphasised the need to fight. On the other hand, the Harris campaign, during the U.S. election, released two different ads for different target groups, with one focusing on a unifying message. The Harris team used right-wing aesthetics in a campaign ad, reinterpreting Trump's narrative on migration to criticise corporations that suppress wages and raise prices.
Arun Chaudhary, former video producer of the Obama campaign and the White House, analysed the Trump campaign's strategy, highlighting the need to break down politics to the everyday life of people to defy expectations and make political proposals more tangible. The Trump campaign's strategy consistently followed the logic of targeted addressing, with ads such as one featuring a covered dining table in a typical American diner, emphasising the promise "Trump won't tax tips. Vote Donald Trump," to show how he wants to improve life in small ways. Another ad showed a child walking towards a woman in military uniform with a hung US flag, conveying a peaceful image and the message "Less wars. Less worries. Vote Donald Trump."
In conclusion, democratic parties in Germany should tailor their messages to different voters to be more convincing, instead of invoking abstract system conflicts between democracy and authoritarianism. By learning from the Trump campaign's disciplined use of repetition, emotional resonance, vision casting, and strategic framing of social and economic anxieties, democratic parties can build a motivating, coherent, and reproducible closing argument in their own campaigns. They must pair critique with inspiring alternatives that address the deeper concerns that Trump’s rhetoric taps into.
- In their upcoming election, German democratic parties should learn from the Trump campaign's intelligent use of political communication, such as repetition and message consistency, to ensure their key messages resonate and are remembered.
- Besides critique, democratic parties should also focus on articulating an inspiring and concrete alternative vision for the future, as the Trump campaign effectively engaged with voters' desire for identity and restoration of a perceived lost status.
- Democratic parties could also benefit from the Trump campaign's approach of addressing real concerns of working-class and middle-class voters, by presenting policies that offer tangible improvements rather than abstract critiques.
