At least in this post, I’m not advocating for any particular political position; I mean for this to be a more generalized discussion.
I have never understood what prompts people to attend political rallies. None of the current US political candidates 100% align with my views, but I am very confident that I made the right choice in who I voted for. That is to say, I’d consider myself a strong supporter of [name here].
To me, it feels like attending a political rally is like attending a college lecture. You have a person giving you information, but you don’t gain anything by hearing it in-person as opposed to reading it or watching a recording. If I want to learn something, it’s much more comfortable for me to read and article or watch a video in the comfort of my own home. If I want to understand what a political candidate stands for, I’d much rather watch a recording of a town-hall meeting or read something she (oops) wrote rather than taking the time to drive to a rally, get packed in with a bunch of other people, and simply stand and listen.
I understand concerts. Hearing live music sounds vastly different than listening to a recording. Same with movies; most of us don’t have an IMAX theater at home. When you’re trying to gather information, though, what’s the draw in standing outside in a crowd at listening to it in person?
I’ve been to two. One was very small and one was in a giant stadium. I went because I wanted to hear the local politician talk in the first one. The stadium one I was kinda dragged to but I didn’t mind, it was a Bernie rally.
I believe it boils down to the sense of community. You are surrounded by a similar thinking people and you can validate your views. Never been to one and I’m pretty sure I won’t be attending in the future.
All of the OP’s points could be said about church sermons as well, and yet there’s still thousands of church gatherings every week.
So I think your point hits the nail on the head. People don’t go to these large gatherings because they’re looking for a presentation of convincing arguments, books and recordings are better for that. They go to experience the sense that they are part of something bigger than themselves. They want to feel like they are contributing to something important, and a large crowd all in unison makes them feel that way. Rallies aren’t meant to change minds, they’re meant to get the base excited to donate/ volunteer/ talk to anyone who will listen.
I think that’s it. But to prevent it from being the same old speech over and over sometimes the candidates shake things up with some outrageous claim or hyperbole.
I’m with you in not getting this. I think the concert comparison is useful. What a lot of people get out of a live show is a connection with the crowd. A bunch of people around them all expressing energy about the same thing. I think it’s the same with a political rally. Personally I don’t get this–I just lack the gene for getting into crowd energy or something. But a lot of people really enjoy this, and people ramp each other up. I kind of think it’s a human instinct we’d be better of without.
I’ve only ever been to one. Been to a lot of protests, but only one political rally.
I went because the politician inspires noble actions, noble thoughts, and I wanted to hear him speak in person. I’ve been a supporter of his for quite a while now, and I wanted to physically show up for him just like I do metaphorically at my polling place. It wasn’t really about hearing his ideas, or receiving new information from him, it was just about being present in the moment, together in a throng of people who all gathered in solidarity with what he and his candidacy represents. Like, how you don’t have to worry about being embarrassed about singing your bands favorite songs out loud, when you’re in a crowd of people gathered to see that band. It was there that I could enthusiastically cheer for what I believe in, what I prioritize.
The rally I’m speaking about was for none other than Bernie Sanders. He was introduced by Donald Glover, and oddly enough, while introducing him, a bird alighted upon the podium, much like what happened at another rally he did. It was a great time, and I’m glad I was there. I’ll remember it for the rest of my life.
In a college lecture, you can gain new information and ask questions. Local government meetings like public consultations about new projects - you can push for a certain outcome.
Political rallies - I reeeally don’t get it. The fact that you even go means that you support the candidate and know their positions. It’s unlikely they will say anything new. It’s usually just a series of soundbites repeating the same ideas that you likely already agree with, otherwise you wouldn’t be there.
Obama visited my kids high school and my family went. My husband shook his hand and told him good luck. We were all really excited to see him speak and answer a few questions.
Is it wishful thinking to say he was the first to say “thanks Obama”?
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Wdym?
The chance to see a future or sitting president and shake their hand is pretty incredible. Depends if you like their politics, obviously.
Once, as a teenager in the 90s, I walked into the Capitol building and, seeing a scrum of VIPs and reporters, barged my way through and shook hands with Bob Dole (the Republican beaten by Bill Clinton in 1996). I was a tourist, I’m not even American.
The openness of America’s political system is special. You should protect it.
Depends if you like their politics, obviously.
It’s a shame that things became this way. In a properly functioning democracy we would respect elected leaders, if only because we respect the office that they temporarily hold.
I get what you’re saying, I think there’s something to hearing it from the horse’s mouth. However, yeah most people don’t go to have their opinions changed, now they go to cheer and chant and show support.
However, I’ll also say, in these smaller states, there really isn’t a lot of going on. A politician is essentially a celebrity to a lot of people, and so having a big event like that in your town of 15,000 is a pretty big deal.
I think at least for me, you really nailed it when you said that politicians are like celebrities to a lot of people. I personally have just never had any interest in celebrities. Music is a big thing for me, but if I had the opportunity to go meet one of my favorite artists, I wouldn’t. What am I going to do, say “hey, I really like your music,” and that’s the end of it? There’s no point. I enjoy the art that they make, but meeting them briefly in-person isn’t going to change anything for them or for me. It’d be a better use of my time to stay home and do just about anything else, maybe even stay home and listen to one of their albums.
Politicians are the same. I’m not buying their album, I’m voting for them. They don’t produce an entertainment product, but they produce a change in my country (be it good or bad) that directly affects me. It still doesn’t make the slightest bit of difference to me or to them if I meet them in-person or not. I can respect what they they do professionally without having a desire to shake hands.
Ah we’re different there. There are 2 celebrities I would love to sit down and have a chat with, I would love to know more about them. It will never happen, but it’s there.
I think people are that way with politicians in this country, they are giddy and obsess, and it’s a fun euphoric state where you forget about reality. During Covid I fell down the parasocial relationship ladder a few rungs because it was more fun than staring at my wall for hours on end, but when Covid ended I pulled myself back out. Not everyone does though.
That’s true, I wouldn’t travel 100 miles to attend one but if it happened 5 miles from me and I liked the candidate I might go for the novelty.
It’s like attending a concert. An additional similarity is I wouldn’t attend any of the popular bands’ but might even travel a bit to see one of the indies.
I don’t know. I’ve never heard of a political rally in Australia. Politicians are assumed liars so I don’t see any reason to go watch them speak.
Yeah I was thinking of going to one yesterday. But it was all the way across the city, I’ve already voted, and I couldn’t think of what the effort would accomplish. Maybe to contribute to the crowd size? Everybody there has made up their minds and/or already voted, and I’m sure the message was “go vote!”
Rallies were always useful before media became its current centralized technological force. Due to people skewing things, it’s still technically useful. All for the same reason it was useful for philosophers like Zeno and Jesus to have people just sit and listen. It’s the public figure equivalent of an artist archiving the step-by-step process on how they made a work of art in order to add some assurance.
