Delegitimization and US presidential electoral campaigns, 1896-1980

Authors

  • Raffaella Baritono University of Bologna

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22439/asca.v52i2.6503

Keywords:

Presidential elections, Delegitimization, Liberalism, Conservatism, Political parties

Abstract

The essay focuses on delegitimization of one’s political opponent as a discursive strategy in US political elections from 1896 to 1980. Starting with a definition of delegitimization as a means of contesting the legitimacy of the opponent’s aspiration to power by turning him/her into an enemy outside the constitutional perimeter, the author highlights the circumstances that conduced to political delegitimization tactics in US presidential campaigns, as well as the stock themes in use over the various periods.

Author Biography

Raffaella Baritono, University of Bologna

Raffaella Baritono is Professor of U.S. History and Politics at the University of Bologna, Department of Political and Social Sciences. She is member of the editorial boards of “Ricerche di Storia Politica”, “Scienza & Politica” and of the journal of political debate “Il Mulino”. She has published extensively on American political history and thought. Among her recent works: Smart Government vs. Deep State: State and Nation, Delegitimization and Political Vision, in Barack Obama and Donald Trump’s Presidential Speeches, in The New Language of American Democracy, ed. Ugo Rubeo, “Costellazioni”, a. III, n. 8, 2019, pp. 15-34; “Mrs. Roosevelt Goes on Tour:” Eleanor Roosevelt’s Soft-Diplomacy during World War II, in D. Fazzi and A. Luscombe, (eds.), The Global Citizen: Eleanor Roosevelt’s Views on Diplomacy and Democracy (New York: Palgrave, 2020).

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Published

2020-11-01

How to Cite

Baritono, R. (2020). Delegitimization and US presidential electoral campaigns, 1896-1980. American Studies in Scandinavia, 52(2), 145–162. https://doi.org/10.22439/asca.v52i2.6503

Issue

Vol. 52 No. 2 (2020): Special Issue: Presidential studies - From history to political science and back

Section

Articles