Ever since 1960, when a visibly perspiring Richard Nixon won a debate on the radio but lost it on TV to a relaxed and dashing John F. Kennedy, image-making has been an inescapable fact of life in American presidential politics.
To go with the red tie or blue? The updo? Decisions about which jackets exude authority and the precise spot to put that American flag pin are painstakingly deliberated - behind the scenes.
Campaigns are loath to talk openly about image-making.
Some of the secrecy no doubt stems from the 2000 presidential campaign, when Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore hired feminist author Naomi Wolf to enhance his appeal to women voters. The media had a good time skewering Mr. Gore over reports that Ms. Wolf advised him to wear more earth tones to soften his image.
Revelations that then-Democratic primary candidate John Edwards paid a Beverly Hills stylist $400 for a haircut last year didn’t exactly play well in Peoria either.
US Weekly reports that the McCain campaign recently paid about $5,500 for the services of a Hollywood makeup artist. Not surprisingly, the Republican candidate’s spokespeople are keeping their (glossed) lips sealed on that as well.
Patsy Cisneros, co-founder of Political Icon, a Los Angeles-based image consulting company, says most political candidates for high-level state and national office have someone working on their image.
Different candidates need different things, she says. However, a few standard rules apply: Men’s facial hair needs to be appropriate; men should always wear a dark suit and a white or blue shirt (depending on skin tone); body language needs to be confident; and, in general, clothes need to be right for the candidate’s color and build.
“The whole idea is also that your image still needs to look to the level at which you are speaking,” says Ms. Cisneros. “You need a look that is able to relate to the people, yet you are never to look the people.”
Candidates Barack Obama, John McCain and Joe Biden have had months - years, even - to find their signature look. However, ever since Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was tapped as the Republican vice-presidential candidate in late August, style experts have been working overtime parsing Mrs. Palin’s image - and offering unsolicited advice.
The loose consensus among the pros? There is a lot to like about Mrs. Palin’s look, but more work still needs to be done.
With the skirt suits she wears, Mrs. Palin scores points for looking conservative, which is the first message she is trying to convey as the Republican candidate, says Ms. Cisneros.
“She looks at a level the governor should,” says Ms. Cisneros, who often works with governor-level clients, although she’s not saying whom.
In order to look vice presidential, Mrs. Palin should make a few changes, starting with the hairdo, she says. There is too much of it, and the updo is not doing Mrs. Palin any favors, says Ms. Cisneros.
“She likes her long hair,” says Ms. Cisneros. “And yes, you can wear it up, but it needs to be more elegant so it fits the title of vice president and the global events and people she will be meeting.”
Ms. Cisneros advises gradual changes. If Mrs. Palin were her client, she would tell her to cut it to about collar length, she says.
Lesley Jane Seymour, editor in chief of MORE magazine, which is geared toward women over 40, says that Mrs. Palin’s look isn’t risky, but it works for her.
“I think her image is very well put together and more sophisticated than you would expect from someone coming from Alaska,” she says. “I wish the McCain camp would get their hands off her. I think they are strangling her as to who she really is.”
Joyce Newman, a New York-based image consultant, says that small changes would enhance Mrs. Palin’s look. She says the governor’s look “is reminiscent of yesterday rather than tomorrow.”
“When you look at her, you don’t know whether it is the 1950s or today,” she says. “But she is quite an attractive woman. I do think she could be a trendsetter if she updates her look.”
Both consultants say they would dress Mrs. Palin in brighter, more vibrant colors rather than safe neutrals.
More advice: Get the hair off the face.
“Bangs and glasses together, that’s a third of your face,” says Ms. Newman. “The glasses are too big, and there is too much hair.”
About those glasses. The Kazuko Kawasaki titanium frames (suggested retail $375) that Mrs. Palin wears are flying off the shelves, but Ms. Newman is not certain they are the right look for the candidate.
“Those glasses are not anti-reflective,” she says. “During her big speech in St. Paul, you could see reflection in her glasses.”
Meanwhile, Mrs. Palin also wore a $2,500 silk Valentino jacket at her acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, the New York Post reported. (A source told the paper, “They do not want the American public to know that Palin is using stylists or that she is paying for expensive clothes this early on in the campaign.”)
Therein lies another challenge for candidates. Can Mrs. Palin represent herself as a small-town hockey mom if she is wearing couture? Can people concentrate on the issues if she is wearing red high heels, like she did at a recent campaign stop in Fairfax?
“Why shouldn’t she wear red shoes?” says Ms. Seymour. “I think we have evolved. I think the next generation is saying ’I can still be a woman; I don’t have to be a man.’ ”
Meanwhile, can Mr. Obama tamp down the elitist criticism if he throws off the Armani suit for shirtsleeves? Does wearing the same navy blazer for each speech add no-nonsense cred to Democratic vice-presidential candidate Joe Biden? And what about Mr. McCain: Is 72 too old for fashion advice?
The experts agree that for the latter two, the message should come more from body language that radiates energy and makeup that makes them look rested. That’s why Mr. Biden came jogging up to the podium when he was announced as Mr. Obama’s running mate.
“Anyone who is on the campaign trail is very tired,” says Ms. Cisneros. “Then within a year of taking office, they are really tired. During the campaign you have to look like you can handle it. There has been a major change in John McCain. Earlier, he was looking very pale, which made him look old. I think now he is wearing the right ties and shirts and makeup.”
Only the secret stylists know for sure.
• Andrea Billups contributed to this story.
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