Tweet like Trump: Political branding and Twitter usage among congressional candidates in 2020 and 2022

ObjectiveWe examine how congressional candidates use social media such as Twitter (X) to promote a political brand and connect with voters during campaigns.MethodsUsing a mixed-method, interdisciplinary approach, we first conduct a brand analysis using 22 candidates from 11 open-seat races in 2020. We develop and test several hypotheses using our races from 2020 and the subsequent contests in these districts in 2022, as well as the universe of tweets from all congressional candidates from the 2020 and 2022 general election campaigns (n = 789,411).ResultsWe find the three prominent themes present in our brand analysis-the adoption of gender roles, the mimicking of Trump, and expressions of populism-persist when we examine the Twitter posts from congressional candidates in 2020 and 2022. Male and female candidates behave differently on Twitter as do Republicans and Democrats. Most Republican candidates, regardless of gender, mimic the Trump brand rife with populist themes.ConclusionWe integrate research from political science and communication studies to gain a better understanding of how congressional candidates present their political brand to voters. We raise new questions scholars from the social sciences must consider while studying these phenomena in a fast-evolving political and social media landscape.