Political Branding: Subterfuge or the New Mode of Governance?

Abstract

Objective: This paper aims to determine whether scholars writing on the subject of political branding and political brands consider political branding to be an artifice or an evolved strategic outlook useful – and necessary – in our current political context.

Research Design & Methods: This is a theoretical paper. The critical review of the literature on political branding research, encompassing articles published between 2016 and 2023, was conducted; seven full-text publications from the EBSCO database were critically analysed.

Findings: My conclusion suggests that the vast majority of scholars writing on the subject of political branding view political branding as a strategic device – both a framework and communication vehicle – useful and necessary in our contemporary political context.

Implications/Recommendations: This paper makes a managerial contribution to the political branding body of knowledge. The analysis of the writings of numerous scholars within the area of political branding indicates that the development of strong and appealing political brands helps political parties and political leaders in effective communication with voters-consumers. Political branding emerges as a necessary tool that should be used by political strategists to ensure that the relationships between politicians/political parties and voters-consumers are deepened and relevant, and the visions and messages communicated by the political actors are cohesive, clearly articulated, concentrated, and well-understood by the voters-consumers.

Contribution/Value Added: This paper is original in showcasing the dominant and overarching approaches and ideas among scholars writing on the subject of political branding.

Article classification: theoretical/review paper

Keywords: political branding, political brand(s), voters-consumers, political marketing

JEL classification: M00, M3, and M38