Zurich,

TRUMP'S LEGAL PROBLEMS CAN BE POLITICAL COMMUNICATION OPPORTUNITY



Political Consultant Says Use Media at Courthouse to Circle Back to Main Campaign Message

Zurich, Switzerland—Donald Trump is facing dozens of felony charges in four criminal cases. Does this mean precious time and attention away from the campaign trail?

Global political consultant Louis Perron, Ph.D., author of the new book Beat the Incumbent: Proven Strategies and Tactics to Win Elections, has observed presidential candidates in legal trouble before. In the Philippines, for example, it is quite a common tactic to try and derail a presidential candidate with legal issues. It happened for Fernando Poe Jr., Grace Poe and during the last election, with Ferdinand Marcos. For Fernando Poe Jr. and Grace Poe, it cost them precious time. Marcos however went on winning a landslide victory nevertheless.

"The key is to use the media attention a candidate is getting due to the legal problem to circle back to the main campaign message," Perron explains.

"While I think that Trump's message of political prosecution resonates with his base, I doubt it's the right message for swing voters. It should focus on Biden and inflation: "Instead of an alleged affair from more ten years ago, we should be talking about how much more you pay for groceries now compared to when I left office."

Perron says that it's also an advantage if a candidate is accused of several different things as Trump is. It makes it easier to dismiss the allegations all together at once without addressing the specifics.

What's impact of Trump having to spend time in the courtroom instead of on the campaign trail? "Time off the campaign trail is certainly not a good thing, but then again, I always doubted the effectiveness of campaign rallies" Perron says. "They are expensive, time consuming, but I think have little effect. They are an important aspect of Trump's campaign style foremost because he enjoys doing them, not because there is much solid evidence of their effectiveness.

"Love him or hate him, there is one thing every politician can learn from Trump: If you don't stand up for yourself, you lose your biggest advocate," said Perron.

Dr. Louis Perron is a political scientist, consultant and TEDx speaker based in Switzerland. He has won dozens of election campaigns in various countries. He's the author of "Beat the Incumbent: Proven Strategies and Tactics to Win Elections."