ABSTRACT
Interest in the field of political marketing on the part of scholars, journalists, campaign professionals and their candidate clients is growing. A number of developments suggest this trend will continue, and are evident in a content analysis of publications in the Journal of Political Marketing. First, the number of consultants running campaigns who are trained in marketing is increasing, as is the role they play; moreover, that trend is disseminating to lower levels of office. Second, there is greater cross-fertilization of American (and to a lesser extent European) consultants into democracies around the globe, which likely will continue as democratization spreads. There is also a realization, backed by a growing body of research, that winning elections hinges on good marketing. Finally, there has been a wider dissemination of scholarship through a multiplying number of conferences, journal articles and books, which fosters cross-fertilization that today spans geographic as well as disciplinary boundaries.
