By Jordan Chester
Between now and election day, all of us are likely to see a multitude of political mailers, social media posts, billboards, digital advertisements, and television commercials. For most of the past seven decades, television has been a popular campaign medium to appeal to voters. So today, I want to offer my opinion as to the presidential campaign advertisements I believe have been the most effective.
President Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign focused on his opposition to the War in Iraq and his wish to usher in an era of change during a moment of economic turmoil. This ad was effective because it conveyed a message of unity during a troubling time, and it highlighted the energy and enthusiasm behind Obama’s candidacy. Voters elected Obama by a decisive margin.
In 2003, grassroots activists organized a campaign to encourage General Wesley Clark, a Rhodes scholar and decorated military veteran who served as NATO Supreme Allied Commander during the Clinton administration, to enter the race for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. The draft movement managed to put together the resources to run this ad. Clark ultimately decided to enter the race and for a time, was a front-runner for the nomination. While Clark wasn’t elected president, this ad was effective because it achieved it’s goal of drafting General Clark into the race.
Locked in a tough re-election race in 2004, President George W. Bush sought to define his Democratic challenger, John Kerry, as a political opportunist who shifted positions based on the politics of the moment. Democrats argued that Kerry hadn’t really flip-flopped all that much and Bush refused to take responsibility for his mistakes. This ad was effective in helping define Kerry from the perspective of the Bush campaign. Bush won a relatively close election.
In 1992, Democrats were tired of losing. They had just lost three consecutive presidential elections, with their candidates in 1984 and 1988 being portrayed as New Deal-era liberals by Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr. Bill Clinton sought to change this perception in 1992 by running to the political center on deficits and welfare reform. He choose Al Gore, a fellow young southern moderate, as his running-mate. This ad showcased their message to voters – that they understood them and were different than other recent Democratic tickets. They won a decisive victory.
5. Reagan’s good morning message
The 1970s were a tumultuous decade and when voters elected Republican Ronald Reagan as President in 1980, the nation was in an economic and foreign policy crisis. After a steep recession in 1982, things started to turn around heading into the election of 1984. This ad highlights a sense of calm that helped Reagan win re-election in a landslide.
After the Vietnam War, economic turmoil, and Watergate, Americans were looking for something different in their political leadership when they headed to the polls in 1976. Jimmy Carter, a farmer who was a former Governor of Georgia, emerged as a surprise contender for President. Carter’s biography, demeanor, and his distance from Washington served as assets in his campaign. This ad highlights these assets. He won the election by a slim margin.
In 1968, Americans saw racial tensions and the war in Vietnam playing out on their television screens every night and in their communities each day. The presidential contest that year featured a choice between Richard Nixon, Dwight Eisenhower’s Vice President, and incumbent Vice President Hubert Humphrey. Nixon sought to tie Humphrey to the challenges of the moment, and this ad does so using visuals. Nixon won a relatively competitive race.
No list of effective presidential campaign commercials could be complete without this ad for Democrat Lyndon Johnson’s 1964 presidential candidacy. President Johnson faced Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, who many at the time considered to be the most ideologically conservative nominee of a major party in recent history. Democrats seized on the opportunity to paint Goldwater as extreme and dangerous, as this ad does. Johnson went on to win the election in one of the biggest landslides in history.
With political television ads still a relatively new phenomenon, John F. Kennedy’s 1960 presidential campaign ran an ad using a catchy jingle, which in of itself would have been effective. Listening to the lyrics, the message was clear – Kennedy was young and would bring about change, yet also experienced enough to lead the nation. Kennedy won the election.
Before the Kennedy Jingle in 1960, there was the Eisenhower Jingle in 1952. In addition to being catchy, the ad sought to convey a message of unity. A war hero, this ad was able to play-up the future President’s status as a well-known figure who people liked. Eisenhower became the first Republican to win a presidential election in twenty-four years when he won decisively.
Observations and Perspectives 