Newt Gingrich - Designing A Candidacy

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich has so far faced a rocky rollout in the formative months of his presidential campaign. After staff defections and bourgeois revelations, Gingrich has retooled his team to concentrate on a lean, local approach to the Republican nomination.

Source: Newt 2012

His logo, however, suggests that Gingrich has been leading the nation for years. His banner implies that Gingrich is so familiar to the voter that the visual focus can rest on the seminal year of 2012. In height and font, the date is emphasized equally as his name, underpinned by a traditional star and red swoop. Gingrich uses only his first name – seemingly resonant, unpretentious, and well-acquainted. His unique moniker over the decades has indeed become part of the daily conversation, with a back-of-the-hand comfort like “Hillary” and “Rudy” in 2008. Gingrich is the only candidate so far in 2012 featuring solely his or her first name.

Gingrich’s overall effect broadcasts a regal, high-on-the-hill, red-wagon sensibility. The design is suitably classic and nationalistic. Gingrich’s website also is tucked subtly in the corner, prominent enough yet also quirky enough to get us thinking: Why dot.org? Why just “Newt”? It turns out other similar websites were already claimed, and some urls link to for-profit ventures selling Gingrich’s DVDs and books. The casual browser, therefore, should be careful when searching for his site.

Check out our other posts about design and education in the 2012 election.