Campaigns Working the Underdog Story

The 2008 presidential campaign has seen some unusual fighting for the low ground. Remarkably, the major candidates have spent considerable amounts of time trying to convince their supporters and the media that he or she is the candidate with the smaller base of support and lower odds of winning.

Primary Tactics

Early in the primary campaign, Barack Obama didn’t need to say much to project the underdog image. The raw hubris of the Hillary Clinton campaign did most of the work for him. John McCain’s embarrassing revenue probem last summer along with stagnant poll numbers had him left for dead.

Yet both candidates found strength in their ultimate resurgence and its contrast with prior expectations. For McCain, this was familiar territory. The story was much the same as his 2000 primary victory in New Hampshire (though it went further this time around). The party in general experimented with the tactic, as the entire Republican field played underdog to Mitt Romney’s personal wealth.

On the Democratic side, Hillary made her play for dark horse status as well, though much later. Rapidly falling behind Obama in delegate count, she recast herself as a “fighter” whose best work was done with her back to the wall. In Pennsylvania, both camps fought to claim the Rocky narrative.

The Darker Horse?

Since the start of the general election, the fight for underdog status has intensified. Recent appeals from both camps are strikingly explicit. Over the past week, the campaigns have been directly arguing with one another over who is currently less likely to win. Behind in the polls and even in money (if you exclude national committee tallies), McCain has sought to alloy his honest, straight talk style with a frank assessment of his “underdog” status.

In the past week alone, McCain has redoubled his efforts, describing Obama both as a celebrity and an idol of divine proportions. Obama doesn’t take the ground, though. He does the opposite, claiming that he will be the underdog until the day he is sworn in “for reasons you might consider apparent”.

Since then, Obama has attempted to further discount his changes by describing himself as outside the traditional candidate mold. Whether or not one thinks the comments are racially charged (as some have alleged), preemptively responding to attacks by simply indicating that they’re likely isn’t a particularly strong move. It is just another play for underdog status.

An Unassuming Asset

That a candidate could attract and energize supporters because she or he is behind and unpopular is difficult to explain rationally. Nevertheless, there is an intuitive appeal to the hero who is behind but won’t give up. This is an old and powerful story. For the story to work, it does require a certain personal tenacity and the sense that something important is on the line, but both Obama and McCain can claim this.

If nothing else, it is also a remarkable turn from the way the primaries opened and how other presidential campaigns have been run. Perhaps it is in some way a reflection on the faltering confidence Americans have in their country. Surely it will be an additional asset if one side can secure the imagery for himself. In all likelihood, this dispute will be carried straight through to November.

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