As the 2024 election draws near, pundits and voters alike obsess over every angle with which to analyze the two candidates. One underrated angle is their social media strategies and the online support that spins out of them. While Donald Trump has beaten his last two opponents in the meme ground game, Kamala Harris is quickly catching up, even surpassing his peak in 2016.
With rising support and enthusiasm from young voters, she is taking up more of the national conversation while Trump stagnates. Harris has crafted her persona as a foil to Trump: joy and positivity vs. revenge and gloom, resulting in a level of organic online support not seen since his first bid for office.
Trump is no stranger to publicity. From early dealings in real estate to later enterprising in entertainment, he has understood the importance of pruning his personal brand. Despite heavy business losses and bankruptcy, the Trump brand is still synonymous with success. This is due to a commonly cited mantra: “no press is bad press.” It is no wonder, then, that Trump launching his bid for the presidency in June of 2015 would lead to intrigue and polarization.
Trump began his fame with a slew of media interviews throughout the 1980s, making appearances with David Letterman, Oprah Winfrey, Larry King and others. His wealth and ego attracted viewers and left them curious. He used this notoriety to grow his brand into the 2000s when he created and hosted his game show: “The Apprentice.” This is where Trump developed his signature line: “You’re fired!”
During the latter half of the show’s lifecycle, Trump often took to Twitter, now X, posting several times a day in the same brash manner he would use to kick off contestants. This behavior cemented him as ultimately confident in his opinions and unapologetic in giving them, laying the groundwork for the themes of his presidential campaign just years later.
At the first Republican debate in 2015, the candidates were asked to raise their hand if they would refrain from pledging their support to the eventual nominee. Trump defiantly thrusted his hand in the air, the only candidate to do so. The audience erupted with thunderous boos and gasps as host Bret Baier reiterated the question, giving him another chance. Trump responded with a smirk: “I understand, I fully understand.”
Not only did Trump posture himself as hostile to his debate opponents, but also to the Republican establishment itself. The outsider attitude that originally garnered jeers eventually won over the support of the party, as Trump coasted through the primary election with 1,542 electors, 982 more than the runner up.
In just months, the majority of Republican voters went from booing to chanting “drain the swamp!” Trump had spent the primary season building an ecosystem of online content creation that churned out endless free press where it mattered most: social media.
When the election rolled around in November, Trump’s momentum was in full swing, particularly on sites like Facebook, Reddit and 4chan. Through fiery rally speeches and a deluge of tweets, Trump was creating clippable moments that would be turned into memes and shared widely across the internet.
Despite posting at similar rates to his opponent Hillary Clinton, he garnered over double the engagement. In 2016, the Trump meme ecosystem worked in three key ways: amplifying perceived positive qualities of Trump, spinning negative jabs into positive views and relentlessly attacking political opponents.
For instance, on TheDonald, a subreddit with 800,000 members at its peak, edited compilations of Trump sparring with debate opponents and throwing insults were often shared. Attacks on Trump’s prominent spray tan were turned to make Democrats look obsessed, spawning the “orange man bad” meme which cast those against Trump as parrots who repeat talking points from mainstream media.
Finally, nicknames like “crooked Hillary” or chants of “lock her up” served to turn his opponent into an evil caricature who was unappealing to voters. By comparison, Clinton’s attempts at online relevancy, with moments such as “chillin’ in cedar rapids,” “Pokemon Go to the polls” and dabbing on national television, made her seem inauthentic and out of touch with voters.
With his army of social media followers behind him, Trump secured the presidency in a historic upset. Celebration ensued across the social media sphere, with one 4chan forum poster writing, “We actually elected a meme as president.”
After Trump’s loss and unsuccessful attempt to cling to power in 2020, his social media sphere was still operating, although it took on a new tone. Trump’s rhetoric shifted from enthusiastic to vengeful. Memes posted during Joe Biden’s presidency reflected this, centering around attacking him, and celebrating Trump’s authoritarian tendencies.
For example, “sleepy Joe,” “let’s go Brandon” and Trump’s 2023 mugshot became the most widely spread. Although the circle of online content was becoming smaller and more negative as opinions of Trump worsened, people thought it would be enough to secure the win due to Biden’s perceived cognitive decline. This was likely true, as polling data showed Biden slipping, especially after his historically bad debate performance. Finally, he decided to drop out of the race and unleash a new challenger: Kamala Harris.
Biden endorsed Harris on July 21, and in the weeks following, a whirlwind ensued. With an aggressive campaign strategy, Harris stormed through swing states and was welcomed with packed venues and energetic supporters. In just five weeks, she raised over $500 million, signed up hundreds of thousands of volunteers and closed the gap Trump won over Biden. Enthusiasm for Harris skyrocketed, far surpassing her opponent.
This enthusiasm, particularly with young voters, formed into a meme ecosystem reminiscent of Trump’s in 2016. Drawing from the “brat summer” meme, compilations of Harris dancing, laughing and having fun were posted after artist Charli XCX tweeted, “kamala IS brat.”
Conservative attacks against her were also spun. A 2023 clip of Harris recounting a quote from her mother went viral. In the clip, she said, “She would give us a hard time sometimes, and she would say to us, ‘I don’t know what’s wrong with you young people. You think you just fell out of a coconut tree?’”
This quote and her cheerful laugh afterward were spread by Republicans to make her look unhinged. Instead, supporters co-opted the clip, making more edits and compilations of it. The coconut emoji even became a sign of support for Harris when put in a profile name or bio.
Finally, Democrats used this ecosystem to levy attacks against Republicans. In a news appearance, eventual vice president pick Tim Walz cast the Republican ticket “just weird,” spawning compilations of Trump and his running mate JD Vance saying strange things. All of the elements of Trump’s 2016 meme ecosystem are there. Meanwhile, Trump is slowly fading into irrelevance.
Trump garnered support in 2016 for seeming like an everyman. He often said things people had never heard politicians say. This gave him a natural relatability that enhanced online enthusiasm. His current campaign, however, is anchored with low energy rambling, constant complaining and insults to the U.S. as a whole. Everyone is familiar with Trump’s schtick, and no one cares to share it.
On the other hand, Harris energized her base, united the Democratic Party and gave voters something to fight for. The 2024 race is still up in the air; the candidates are virtually tied. However, should Trump lose, it can be blamed in part on his inability to stir up his online supporters, and Harris’ successful recruitment of her own.