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Political Logos Redesigned
From Bernie to Trump: A Fresh Take on the 2020 Presidential Candidates' Logos Inspired by Their Personalities and Agendas
No nation does politics quite like the United States. Come fall in an election year, candidate scandals, political strategies and expert panelists' endless speculation fill the airwaves and trump (pun intended) even college football as America's favorite spectator sport.
While society and culture evolve, political symbols and logos (and even some politicians) are stuck in the stone age. We need a new vision for the future, and a fresh perspective on our 2020 candidates. Every politician is a brand and every brand begins with a logo.
While politicians vie for the coveted vote with speeches, live appearances and paid political advertising, equally important is the emotion and message their brands communicate.
Remember Obama's "O" that looked like a sunrise over America? A strong brand was the foundation for his campaign success. Then, of course, there was Jeb Bush's 2016 logo, "Jeb!" Unfortunately for Jeb(!), his enthusiasm wasn’t reciprocated by his campaign supporters. #pleaseclap
But here we are in 2019, where informed voters need a mental machete to hack through all the spin and BS.
So when inspiration strikes, we respond... with six new logos for the presidential candidates (and an unannounced candidate to spice it up). We designed these new logos to give voters an authentic take on the top candidates. While the jury is still out on the candidates, these logos have our vote.
Mayor Pete Buttigieg
The first in the list is Mayor Pete Buttigieg. There is nothing short of sterling about Buttigieg, who recently announced his presidential candidacy. South Bend, Indiana's mayor of eight years is a darling from day one, and there are valid reasons for it: He's a veteran who's served in the U.S. Navy reserve and later on in Afghanistan.
He’s well versed in the global economy and financial investments through his experience gained from his McKinsey and Co. days before he "retired" to a life in politics.
He's also well versed in the language of the elite and of the law, having attended Harvard, and then later, Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.
His supporters think him smart, clear headed and transparent.
He's our Millennial Man and this is his current political campaign logo:
But underneath all that, Buttigieg is a colorful contradiction.
For starters, Buttigieg is only two years short of the minimum age requirement for running for president, and even lesser experienced where politics are concerned, making him extremely amateur compared to the other candidates.
He has an immigrant background, with parents from Malta, and did we mention he speaks seven languages?
And most importantly, he's unapologetically gay and openly displays his relationship with his husband, Chasten.
And if that wasn't enough, Buttigieg slaps his evangelical counterparts with secular association and St. Augustine quotes on the regular.
For this reason we think this logo is more to his personal brand of politics:
Whether Buttigieg wins or loses, let's just say his logo won’t be the butt of political jokes as much as that of the following candidate.
President Donald Trump
We can't have a breakdown of the candidates in the US general election without looking at this notorious candidate. He goes by many names: 45, The Donald, President Cheeto, The Toddler with Nukes, Lil' Hands, President Grabber, and, of course, the Big Orange from the Big Apple. Given a second wind after surviving the Mueller probe, President Trump is the one to beat, with a base more stimulated than a lonely housewife sitting on a washing machine. Trump will be remembered for his uncanny ability to win the support of "very fine people on both sides."
But do you remember his 2016 logo?
Although quite appropriate in hindsight, somehow a T penetrating a P doesn't really work for 2020. Maybe it worked for "Make America Great Again," but does it really say, "Keep America Great" without washing over the Civil War, Civil Rights, #MeToo or climate change movements?
For one thing, Trump has yet to accomplish his biggest promise—building the wall across the Mexican border, and having Mexico pay for it.
We think these logo designs provide a more accurate reflection of the 2020 Trump Presidential campaign:
Maybe he never builds it, maybe he does. But I think we can all agree that, in the end, the real wall was in our hearts.
Senator Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris is the first US Senator to be of Jamaican and Indian ancestry, making her the most diverse candidate in the field. And unlike Elizabeth Warren, she’s, like, actually Indian though. Kamala comes from Sanskrit, meaning lotus, and Harris comes from English, meaning lotus. Hmmmm…
But her diversity doesn't stop there. Her career as a prosecutor and California's attorney general have many saying, "Finally, a presidential candidate that's also a lawyer!"
She's even more worldly than most other candidates, having graduated from a Canadian high school, no doubt, where her head was filled with strange ideas like "free healthcare."
Here's her current logo:
What this lacks is personality. Something about her that voters can really attach themselves to: the first female president, last woman standing, or whatever else she stands for.
So here are our versions:
Remember, representation matters.
Rep. Beto O'Rourke
The handsome and charming musician and former member of the House of Representatives, Beto O'Rourke's biggest accomplishment was being slightly more detestable in Texas than Ted Cruz. His failed attempt to reach the US Senate has raised his profile enough that he's decided, "Sure. President. I guess I’ll fall back on that."
Born Robert Francis O'Rourke, he earned the name Beto after his friends admired his collection of bootleg concerts on Betamax tapes. That sure is something.
This is his current logo:
I dunno. Something about this screams Top Gun. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But there's something more profound here. As a dyslexic Shakespeare once wrote, "Beto or not beto, that is the question."
Here's what we came up with:
When your personal brand gets mixed up with your political campaign, it's time to reconsider your strategy.
Senator Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Warren was elected in Massachusetts, a state whose name is so hard to spell, that practically anyone who moves there has to be a genius. Having taught law at several universities, including Harvard, Warren has created a reputation for being a bit of a policy wonk with the personality of that kooky great aunt who has a few too many, and likes to dance the Macarena at family weddings. Especially when the DJ is playing an entirely different song.
Her priorities have been decreasing the wealth gap and helping poor people, something rich people tend to be against.
Here's Elizabeth Warren's current logo.
Honestly, this is pretty good. It helps that her name has "WAR" in it. Americans love war stuff. Especially Republicans. We’ve tried War on Terror, War on Drugs, War in Iraq, War in Afghanistan, War on Poverty, why not War Ren?
But, we think she could do better. Perhaps something to pay homage to her Native American ancestry from what a DNA test concluded was "probably 6 generations ago."
There, that's better!
On second thought, perhaps it's a bit mean to poke fun at that whole falsely claiming to be a member of a disadvantaged group thing. She can let us know if she has any reservations with it, and we’d be happy to bury the hatchet.
Senator Bernie Sanders
The Viper from Vermont is back at it again, spitting class struggle and self-described democratic-socialist policies. In 2016, he had many bros feeling the Bern with populist anger, and he’s pretty much looking to repeat the same strategy with more name recognition in 2020.
At 77, he's the oldest in the race. Although, given his cantankerous demeanor, most people are like, “Oh… He’s only 77?”
Here's his current logo:
Somehow, despite being a bitter old man, young people love him. Just think, in the 1960s when Beatlemania was sweeping the nation, throngs of young people were actually gathered, screaming to see George Burns. There's something sensational about old Jewish men…
While he's known for his unkempt hair and blunt rhetoric, let's be honest, the logical outcome of it all is to overthrow the ruling class.
And here's what we think is a little more on-brand.
Viva la revolucion!
Vice President Joe Biden
Joe Biden is the Coors Light of candidates, well known, established and not much flavor.
As President Obama's VP pick, Joe Biden was a little like America's Will Riker from Star Trek: TNG. A hard, second-in-command that is somehow both a no-nonsense man of duty on the outside, while suppressing a party animal and joker on the inside. And you probably wouldn’t be surprised to find him shotgunning a beer, say a Coors Light, on the weekends.
Once thought a political gaffe machine, he's since been outclassed by President Trump's outlandish behavior. Anything untoward that Biden has ever done in his long career now seems sober and methodical by comparison. Biden isn't even running yet, but already polling well, despite "touching" scandals.
There's a general feeling that the only way to beat Trump, an old, exciting, orange man, is to replace him with an older, boring, white man. At 76, diamond Joe has that in spades.
Here's what we've come up with for him.
Maybe we're being too hard on him for his age. After all, he’s not the oldest presidential candidate.
Thanks for checking out our redesigned logos for the 2020 presidential candidates. We hope they provide you some insight on the candidates, as we steamroll into another presidential election. Grab a Coor’s Light, and enjoy the charade.
Please share your favorite logos and your ideas for better candidate logo with the hashtag #BetterCandidateLogos.
Author:
By Zaheer Dodhia, CEO and Founder of LogoDesign.net, is a serial entrepreneur who has a passion for solving small business and startup problems with affordable branding solutions. Connect with him via LinkedIn
Reviewed by: Zaheer Dodhia
CEO and Founder LogoDesign.net