Earlier this week, candidates for the Nov. 24 nine-in-one elections unveiled campaign memorabilia, including household items such as tissues, cups, masks and handheld fans.
Elsewhere in the world, political mementos are popular during presidential elections, but in Taiwan their popularity extends to legislative and local elections. Memorabilia are often purchased with campaign funds and distributed during canvassing.
The candidates presenting items earlier this week even hinted at the “collector value” of items due to limited stock.
Just how collectible are the items and how effective are they in helping a candidate win?
Adam Gottlieb, a collector of presidential campaign memorabilia whose collection has been shown at exhibitions, said that such items are popular for the nostalgia that they encapsulate.
People tend to collect items from presidencies that were meaningful to them, he said, adding that the item is likely to possess higher value if it is emblazoned with a memorable campaign slogan or is associated with a memorable president or event.
“There’s got to be something behind the item — the personality, the election, the historical context — or you might as well be collecting nails,” former American Political Items Collectors president Neal Machander said.
Near election time it is not uncommon to see Americans show their political affiliation through bumper stickers, T-shirts and pins, as well as updates on social media, a May 17, 2016, article on the Time magazine Web site said, adding that pins, while rarely seen outside of election time, “have stayed in the public consciousness, because they featured slogans that became their own cultural moments.”
The campaign pins for former US president Barack Obama often featured only his name or caricature, but became iconic if for no other reason than Obama eventually becomming the nation’s first black president. Obama being elected president embodied his campaign slogan — “change” — regardless of what he achieved in office.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei mayoral candidate Pasuya Yao (姚文智) has hit the mark with his campaign slogan: “Taiwan Taipei,” printed on cups and T-shirts. The slogan — a direct response to the “Chinese Taipei” nomenclature that is forced on Taiwan in the international arena due to pressure from Beijing — refers to more aggressive efforts planned to have Taiwan recognized as independent from China and shows support for the referendum to change the Olympic team’s name. If his campaign and the referendum are successful, the memorabilia would become collectibles.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei mayoral candidate Ting Shou-chung (丁守中) has opted for masks with a caricature of himself to emphasize his platform of tackling air pollution.
While not unimportant, tackling air pollution might be less memorable than the name-change referendum to see Taiwan dump “Chinese Taipei.” A mask, which is disposable and might not even be of the quality needed to block particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, is less likely than a porcelain mug to stand the test of time.
Campaign memorabilia can effectively boost the visibility of candidates and they are welcomed by collectors, particularly those who are more vocal about their political affiliation.
However, memorabilia without meaning are wasteful and can do more harm than good to a campaign. What will always be most important to a candidate’s success is their ability to connect and communicate with their constituents.
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