Biden’s 19th Century Campaign
Pandemic conditions have prompted Biden to campaign differently – fewer in-person events and campaign stops, more campaign surrogates. The result has been something that resembles a 19th-century presidential campaign, with less emphasis on the candidate as the focal point. Before the 1880s or so, presidential candidates rarely campaigned on their own, relying instead on other members of their parties to run local campaigns. Biden’s surrogates have been a mix of politicians and major celebrities – old-school campaigning with a contemporary twist.
In the past, presidential campaigns bound these highly diverse party coalitions together. You see a bit of this in 2020, with some party activists on the left supporting Biden despite differing policy visions. As a result, the Democrats’ 2020 campaign has felt less oriented around Biden than those of Clinton in 2016 or Obama in 2008. Biden comes off as a creature of his party rather than a cult of personality. Some campaign messages have emphasized his empathy and character, but the overall effect has been to highlight the coalition over the individual.