It was 8th September 1960. John F. Kennedy, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate, arrived in the US state of Oregon for campaigning. Here supporters surrounded him.
Kennedy saw something in his crowd of admirers that brought a smile to his face. Indeed, some of Kennedy's supporters brought two donkeys with them. Kennedy waved at the donkeys and praised those who brought them.
1960 Democratic Party candidate John F. Kennedy petted donkeys at a rally.
Richard Nixon was the candidate from the Republican Party against Kennedy in this election. When he arrived in Hawaii to preach, he was greeted at the airport by a giant paper elephant. Nixon had high praise for the elephant maker.
Richard Nixon looks at a hand of paper with his wife at Hawaii State Airport.
Donkeys and elephants are an important part of American elections, besides these three colors purple, red and blue have also been a symbol of American elections for 24 years, interesting facts about American politics in 3 chapters…
Chapter-1
When did elephants and donkeys become part of American elections?
It is about the year 1828. Andrew Jackson was a candidate from the Democratic Party in the US presidential election. He was pitted against John Adams of the Whig Party. Jackson made several promises to win the election, which Adams greatly ridiculed.
Adams corrupted Jackson's name and began calling him Jacks (donkey). Jackson took this as a challenge and began printing a picture of a donkey in his election posters. Jackson also won that election. After this the Democrats started making donkeys a part of their election campaigns.
Then came the period of 1860s. It was an election year in America. Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate, had a strong lead in the state of Illinois. To make Lincoln look impressive, newspapers began printing a picture of an elephant instead. This was the first time the Republican Party was depicted as an elephant.
However, the most important role in identifying the Democratic Party as a donkey and the Republican Party as an elephant was played by famous American cartoonist Thomas Nest.
He used donkey cartoons for the Democratic Party and elephants for the Republican Party extensively in the 1870s. The result was that both sides made the donkey and the elephant their permanent symbols, which continue to this day.
This cartoon by Thomas Nest is from 1879. In this he has tried to make the Republican Party look powerful.
Chapter-2
How party politics and then American politics became divided on the basis of color.
On April 30, 1789, George Washington became America's first president. He did not belong to any party. He said that parties create division among people. However, when Washington was president, differences began to arise between the leaders over the running of the country. Because of this, America's bankers and businessmen came together to form the Federalist Party in 1789, which spoke for their interests.
Party politics in America started here. Washington's fears turned into reality. From 1789 to the present, the map of America has been divided several times by party support.
When Abraham Lincoln became president in 1865, he ended slavery. Because of this, the grip of the Republican Party became stronger in the northern states of America. Also, angered by Lincoln's decision, southern states began to support the Democratic Party.
After 159 years this support has completely reversed. The Democratic Party is now strong in the northern states. These states are called blue states. Also, the Republican Party enjoys heavy support in the southern states, known as red states.
The story of how these American states were divided into red and blue is also interesting… In India, the color saffron immediately comes to mind for the Bharatiya Janata Party, red for the Left and blue for the Bahujan Samaj Party. However, this is not the case in America. There is no ideology behind party colors in America. This division of colors between the two parties is only 24 years old.
According to CNN, until a few decades ago, colors didn't really matter in politics because TV and newspapers were black and white. Later American newspapers and TV channels started using colors as per their convenience and thinking.
In the 1976 election, the ABC channel showed the Republican Party in yellow and in the 1980 election, it showed the Republican Party in red. After this, the Democratic Party was sometimes shown in red and sometimes in blue. This happened for the first time in the 2000 election when the entire American media showed the Republican Party in red and the Democratic Party in blue.
Indeed, the 2000 election was very interesting because of the close contest between the two parties. The result of this election between Republican candidate George Bush and Democratic candidate Al Gore was announced after 36 days.
Florida's results were inconclusive for either candidate. The matter went to court. Respectfully, in order for people to understand the results easily, it was agreed among all the channels and newspapers that they would color the Republican Party in red and the Democratic Party in blue. Then these two colors became the identity of American parties.
CNN's coverage featured Republican Bush in red and Democrat Al Gore in blue.
Chapter- 3
How can a purple or swing state between red and blue change the game?
In the distribution of red and blue colors, there are some states which are called purple states. These are the states where the two sides are at loggerheads. In addition to purple states, they are also called swing states, because they can swing to either party, that is, they can flip.
There are a total of 538 electoral votes i.e. seats in the 50 states of America and the capital Washington DC. There are 93 seats in swing states alone, while Trump or Kamala need to win 270 seats to win the election. In such a situation, the swing states decide the President of the United States.
Pennsylvania- The most popular swing state
Issues- Crime, abortion, economy
Among swing states, Pennsylvania has the most electoral votes with 19. This is the reason why both the parties have campaigned the most in this state. According to the BBC, in the last few weeks, the state has seen advertisements worth Rs 2.4 thousand crore, which is the highest compared to any other state.
The Republican Party has won Pennsylvania only once from 1992 to 2020. In 2016, Trump defeated Hillary Clinton by 0.7% of the vote. In the 2020 election, Biden defeated Trump by a margin of just 1.2%.
North Carolina – Kamala's party has won the election here only once.
Issues- Illegal immigrant, abortion
North Carolina is dominated by the Republican Party. From 1980 to 2020, the Democratic Party has won only once, in 2008. Barack Obama then defeated Republican candidate John McCain by just 14,177 votes (0.32%).
Here in the 2020 election, Trump defeated Biden by about 74 thousand votes (1.34%). This is the only state out of the current 7 swing states where Trump won in the last election.
However, due to the narrow vote margin between the two parties in the last few elections, North Carolina has been placed in the swing state category this time around.
Wisconsin – Trump said – if you win here, understand that everything is won
Issues- Abortion, economy
Wisconsin has long been a blue state. From 1988 to 2020, the Republican Party managed to win here only once (2016). Trump won here by just 22,748 (0.77%) votes. Also in 2020 election he lost by only 20,682 (0.63%) votes.
Because of this brief rivalry, Wisconsin became a battleground state. Here both sides are pushing hard for victory.
The Republican National Convention was held in July in Milwaukee. It's in Wisconsin. According to the BBC, Trump touted the state's importance and said that if he wins Wisconsin, he will win everything.
Even the Democratic Party knows the importance of Wisconsin. Kamala held her first rally in Wisconsin just 2 days after Biden dropped out of the presidential race. Kamala then said that the road to the White House goes through Wisconsin.
According to the report, the biggest problem for the Democratic Party in Wisconsin is Green Party candidate Jill Stein. Stein is also a US presidential contender. She is campaigning on the promise of basic rights to employment, education, housing, health and food.
Many surveys claim that he could get 1% (about 10,000) votes in this election. This can make a big difference in a state like Wisconsin. This is why the Democratic Party has tried so hard to unseat Jill.
The Democratic Party has complained to the Election Commission that Jill Steen's candidacy is illegal. He did not follow the election rules properly. Indeed, the ideology of the Green Party is somewhat closer to that of the Democratic Party. The presence of the Green Party hurts the Democratic Party the most.
Nevada- The swing state with the fewest seats Issue- unemployment
The Democratic Party has won Nevada in the last 4 elections. However, the vote margin here has been low in the last two elections. In the last election, Biden beat Trump by about 2.5% of the vote. Also, in the 2016 election, Hillary defeated Trump by 3.4% of the vote.
Due to narrow margins in the last two elections, Nevada is placed in the swing state category this time. Even though this swing state has the lowest 6 electoral votes. Despite this, since 2004, the party that won the state has won the presidential election.
According to The Guardian, Nevada has the highest unemployment rate of any US state. Donald Trump has been raising the issue of the economy for some time now. Also, the Democratic Party is taking credit for saving the country from Corona.
Arizona – Republican Party stronghold flipped in 2020
Issues- Illegal refugees, abortion
Arizona has been a stronghold of the Republican Party. From 1952 to 2020, the Democratic Party has won only twice. Clinton won here for the first time in 1996 and Biden won here in the last election. However, he won by only 10,457 votes (0.3%).
Actually, Arizona is the closest state to Mexico. Over the past few decades, people from other countries have settled in Arizona via Mexico.
According to the US Census Bureau, in 1996, white Americans made up 67.6% of Arizona. Which will decrease to 52.9% in 2024. Also, the Hispanic (Spanish-speaking South American) population, which was 22.4% in 1996, has now increased to 32.9%. Democratic Party policy is pro-immigrant. In such a situation it has benefited from this change in demography.
This time, Trump has made the migrant problem the biggest issue. He raised this issue in the last two debates as well. Apart from this, he has been raising this issue in almost every speech.
Georgia – where Biden prevented the Republican Party from winning a seventh term
issues – Immigration, inflation and health care
Georgia was a stronghold of the Democratic Party. From 1868 to 1956, the Democratic Party won 27 consecutive elections here. Then in the nineties, the Republican Party established its dominance here.
In the 2020 election, the Republican Party set out to win Georgia for the seventh consecutive time, but failed to do so. Biden defeated Trump by 11,779 (0.23%) votes. This is the reason why Georgia, a red state, became a swing state in the last election.
Trump was arrested in Georgia last year. He had to go to jail for 20 minutes. In fact, Trump was accused of trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Michigan – Muslim voters, disaffected with the Democratic Party, will side with black voters
Issues- Economy and Immigration
In Michigan, from 1992 to 2020, the Republican Party won only once (2016). In the 2016 election, Trump won here by just 10,704 votes (0.23%). In the 2020 elections, Trump lost here by about 1.5 lakh votes.
There are about 100,000 Arab-American Muslims in Wayne, Michigan. They are outraged by the ongoing conflict in Gaza. More than 100,000 voters chose the 'none' option in the Democratic Party primary contest. In fact, these voters were upset about not being able to provide American weapons to Israel and stop the war in Gaza.
Trump also has his eye on Michigan. According to the BBC, Trump has repeatedly criticized the Democratic government over the war in Gaza. Trump said he would stop the war in Gaza if he becomes president.
Kamala Harris moved to Michigan in early August. Here he faced heavy opposition. Expressing displeasure over it, Kamala said that if you want Trump to win the election, oppose me.
Michigan is 74% white Americans. About 14% are black voters. Last time, Biden got the support of black voters. With Kamala Harris as the contender, black voters can once again express their faith in the Democratic Party.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
