The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election: Democratic Norms and Group Perceptions

Citizens, journalists, and scholars have shown increased interest in candidate violations of democratic norms, ranging from former President Trump’s campaign rhetoric to the Capitol riot. But how unusual are the former President’s actions on the campaign trail? And to what extent do norm violations benefit - or harm - presidential candidates?

Other campaign strategies involve social norms around non-elites. For example, some campaign messages emphasize group norms in order to influence turnout and correct misinformed beliefs. How do communications based on group behaviors, beliefs, and attitudes affect voters during presidential campaigns?

Chapters in this edited volume explore the communications of the President, and other actors, including groups promoting turnout and fact-checking candidate statements. It uses the historic 2020 U.S. Presidential Campaign to explore the relationship between campaign messages and democratic norms, as well as the potential of social norms to shape election-year behaviors, attitudes, and perceptions among voters. This volume highlights different features of the changing role of democratic and group norms in presidential elections.

The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Political Marketing.