US Elections 2024: Power of campaign slogans and social media – decoding Donald Trump’s 2016 Presidential polls victory

US Election 2024: Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are running for president of United States. This marks 78-year-old Trump’s third bid for the White House.

Trump lost the 2020 election to Democratic candidate Joe Biden. The New York real estate baron and reality TV star, however, defeated former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to become the 45th president of the United States in 2016.

The 2016 US elections were held on November 8, 2016. For the first time since 2004, Republicans won or held unified control of the presidency and Congress.

Trump won the 2016 election through many factors combined to create a political landscape in his favour. Some of the key factors thatled to the Republican nominee’s victory in the Electoral College despite losing the popular vote are:

The Key factors

1- Throughout the campaign, Trump projected himself as an outsider who was there to challenge the political establishment. This, analysts said, resonated with voters who were frustrated by traditional politics.

2- Trump focused on powerful campaign slogans like ‘Make America Great Again’. This generated a sense of nationalism amid a cry for economic revival.

3- In key swing states such as Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan, Trump received the support from working-class voters who, many say, felt ignored by the Democrats.

4- Perhaps some anger against Trump’s rival Clinton played its part, too. There were controversies regarding Hillary Clinton’s emails. Additionally, some analytics said voters felt a general sense of fatigue with the Democrat-led US administration.

5-The voter turnout also witnessed a shift. Some traditional Democratic voters preferred not to vote, while Trump’s supporters voted in better numbers.

6-The 2016 election saw social media being used as a powerful campaign tool. Many analysts believe that social media helped Trump use the medium to communicate directly with voters and shape the narrative around his campaign in the 2016 US Presidential elections.

Trump won Electoral College, Clinton popular vote

In what many political analysts called a stunning upset, Trump, with his populist and nationalist campaign, won the Electoral College. He bagged 304 votes against Clinton's 227 in 2016 US elections.

Clinton won the popular vote with 65,853,516 votes (48.5 percent), compared to Trump's 62,984,825 (46.4 percent). This was the biggest margin of victory ever by a losing candidate.

Clinton became the fifth US presidential candidate ever inthe country to win the popular vote but lose the election.

Other Historical Firsts

There were other historical firsts too. Trump became the first president in more than six decades with no experience serving in Congress or as a governor. The other two Presidents without such experience were Dwight Eisenhower and Herbert Hoover.

At 70, Trump also became the oldest president in US history. Prior to Trump, Ronald Reagan was 69 when he was sworn in.

All eyes are on the November 5 election, which will decide who will be the 47th US President – Donald Trump or Kamala Harris.