Despite his lack of political experience and credibility, Donald Trump has managed to propel himself into the frontline for the 2016 American Election, being selected as the Republican Nominee during the Republican Convention in July. In doing this he surprised many people, both supporters who didn’t expect such success, as well as those who dismissed Trump for being too ridiculous to stand a chance in the big leagues. So how is he doing it?
His charisma
Whilst Trump could never be considered charismatic in the charming sense of the word, there is something to be said about the way he presents himself that has undoubtedly contributed to his success. Used to ‘putting on a show’ from his work in both the business world and his appearances on television shows, Trump has had a lot of experience in engaging audiences. His bawdy confidence can be compelling, and his refusal to back down from statements, no matter how controversial they may be, encourages support from those who agree with him. He is seen as an individual who is not afraid to speak his mind, and thus receives backing from those who believe ‘political correctness’ is one of the main issues with the world today.
His character
In a time when many Americans have become disillusioned with the establishment, Donald Trump provides a handy alternative. Having not held any public office to date, Trump has not had the opportunity to be ‘corrupted by the system’, and can instead can be seen to represent the average American. In this way, he has connected with voters that, like him, want to ‘make America great again’, and so his outrageous and often blatantly racist and discriminatory statements can be interpreted as patriotic. It also helps that Trump presents himself as the epitome of the American Dream, claiming to have worked his way up from the bottom (although he has received a lot of ridicule for suggesting that the one million dollar loan he received from his father was small and insignificant in this.) Nevertheless, for Trump supporters this is just another way in which he represents the public, and so encourages support for him.
The politics of fear
The recent increase of attacks in the West has made terrorism a much more prevalent feature in many peoples lives, causing a higher level of alarm and fear. Trump has harnessed this through providing simple solutions to people’s concerns. His suggestions, which in a time of peace and clarity might appear ridiculous, can be passed off as plausible. The fact that his solutions would not genuinely be able to solve the problems is irrelevant, it is the relief that they can bring that is important. In this way, it doesn’t matter that Trump operates very much on a style over substance based approach, because it is the willingness to directly address these issues that has garnered him support. This is especially true when the public are not content with the responses from other politicians, who may be restricted by consideration of human rights amongst other things.
These are just some of the many factors that have enabled Donald Trump, a man who intends to make the Mexicans pay for a wall to separate them from America, become a serious presidential candidate. At least we only have to deal with Boris Johnson.