Hello, in this issue weβll look at the new design elements brought in for Bidenβs 2024 campaign rebrand. Scroll to the end to see what the campaign is doing with its most experimental accounts. β Hunter
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President Joe Biden is officially running for reelection with a new logo that shows the red stripe E in his last name now waving like a flag. Say hello to Biden β24.
Bidenβs announcement video assumes former President Donald Trump or at least an heir to MAGAism is on track to challenge him next year, but how do you rebrand for a sequel voters arenβt particularly interested in? Polling has found voters are unenthusiastic about the prospect of Biden v. Trump II, but the Biden 2024 identity sticks to presidential rebrand fundamentals: keep what voters know but update it enough to stay current.
The Biden campaign didnβt immediately make creative director Robyn Kanner available for comment, but we can assume there were no mood boards used in the making of this rebrand. Kanner told the New York Times in a story published earlier this month that she designs for βworldsβ instead of βmood boards.β
βA mood board is an idea,β Kanner said. βA world is a place that triggers all my senses.β
The Biden campaignβs 2020 world introduced gradients into political design, but across Bidenβs 2024 launch day digital assets there was only one piece of creative I came across that used a gradient. The ad, running on Meta, used a classic orange-to-purple gradient and the copy was an apology. βYou know I hate to ask, but a donation would mean a lot.β
In lieu of gradients, Bidenβs 2024 identity introduces an off-white creme to compliment the campaignβs red and blue. A similar color combination was previously used in the Philadelphia 76ers 2019-20 City Edition uniforms, and it provides a way to βworld buildβ in traditional American colors distinct from the Trump campaign aesthetic.
Another new element in Bidenβs campaign identity is handwritten scribbles and notes. The effect is used to jazz up graphics with underlines and circles for emphasis, and slogans are written in a controlled but relaxed cursive youβd expect from the husband of an English professor who signs bills into law for a living.
Bidenβs first Instagram post of the campaign was the new logo with a call to action to join the campaignβs text list, and a caption positioning the campaign as a fight against βMAGA extremism.β In a launch email to supporters, Biden reiterated the message of his launch video: βWhen I ran in 2020, I said we were in a battle for the soul of America. We still are.β

The campaignβs Team Joe and Vote Joe accounts posted the most experimental graphics in 2020, but in their first posts back, the formerly gradient-heavy accounts have new yellow, black, and white graphics. The color scheme is giving Clinton 2016 campaign opposition branding, but so far the accounts are promoting Bidenβs first-term record and making the case why he deserves a second.
Make no mistake, this is the Biden-Harris reelection campaign. The campaign websiteβs favicon isnβt the new waving Biden E, but a BH monogram. Vice President Kamala Harris appears 12 times in the reelection announcement video and in 57% of the campaignβs digital ads with photos now running on Meta platforms. While some pundits cast Harris as a drag on the ticket, Bidenβs campaign launch treats her as one of its greatest assets.
The campaignβs online storefront is selling items with the new logo, but the merch that received the most attention is the βDark T-shirtβ and βDark Roast Mugβ showing Bidenβs βDark Brandonβ character with glowing red eyes. βBest worn while vanquishing Malarkey,β the shop page reads.
Bidenβs 2020 campaign world was lit by gradients that felt like the future and looked like candy. So far, his 2024 campaign world isnβt as sugary. The updated color scheme feels classic and the creme carries the weight of parchment or official White House letterhead. The handwritten marks arenβt doodles youβd find on the back of a napkin, theyβre notes from the president.

The challenge in any reelection campaign is to convince voters progress is being made but the job isnβt done, and Bidenβs visual identity is built to communicate things like his White House accomplishments and record on infrastructure. While next yearβs race could become a dreaded rerun of the last presidential campaign, Bidenβs visual branding is preparing at least for a world that looks different.
Have you seen this?
π Biden and Trump are taking two different approaches to social media. Welcome to a new era of social media where influencers deinfluence, verification is paid, and campaigns no longer rely on Facebook like they used to. [π ππππ]
Droga5 takes us on a hyperlink trip in The New York Times campaign. Through a series of connected objects, the ads replicate a readerβs journey from one article to the next, and the next, and the next... [Itβs Nice That]
π There are new U.S. Postal Service stamps in honor of Roy Lichtensteinβs 100th birthday. Lichtensteinβs widow Dorothy said in a statement, βI have always been a fan of the Post Office. I think it's an amazing organization. It gets mail to everywhere, not just in this country, but around the world. I think it's an honor and more people will find out about Roy. I think he would have really loved it.β [U.S. Postal Service]
Guess which swing states Biden and the Democrats have first reserved ad time in? Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, per AdImpact Politics.
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