ABSTRACT
A candidate's image is often the focus of the campaign message as it is amplified for television ads, phone banks, and direct mail. But some observers criticize consultant-based campaigns for focusing on images and relegating issues to the electoral woodshed. Additionally, many consultants believe that unless a candidate can establish a strong personality in a campaign context, voters will not believe that he or she has the tools needed to perform as a political leader in a pluralistic democracy. Some scholars view the political candidate as an orator whose utterances can be analyzed with theories that go back to the work of Aristotle. Questions about the nature of candidate images inevitably lead to additional questions about how voters develop these images. In fact, nearly any psychological theory related to attitude development or impression formation can be applied to image. Cognition, evaluation, and behavioral manifestations are the factors that outline the essential elements of the image process.
