Donald Trump is a convicted felon on 34 counts and Kamala Harris has incorrectly convicted people. In the 2024 election, it seemed to shift from political policy to instead attacks on character and purity. Donald Trump was a man who already had a record of being evil, so it was foreseeable that a convicted felon is running. On the other hand, Kamala Harris was labeled as evil because of her past convictions, yet it was a different type of evil. Society expected her to be pure in order to run for president, unlike Trump who had normalized his lack of purity.
Purity is a social construct, something that is molded by the values of society, so truly, what does it mean to be pure? When we disagree with politicians, we look into their past and every action to try to find a way that they have not been pure. We either expect politicians to be so pure with their record spotless or not pure at all, embracing their immoral actions and justifying them by saying they are not innocent.
History and Definition:
Purity politics is best defined as an ideological framework where there is strict and uncompromising adherence to a specific set of moral or political values to be included in a group. Political Science professor Tim Murphy adds to this definition.
“Withholding support of a party or candidate that you are normally aligned with. But given that you are focused on a single issue or small number of interrelated issues that the individual or group feels really strongly about….they are simply not going to commit to voting for that individual,” Murphy said.
Purity in politics tends to show up at any time. It can take a small issue and blow it out of proportion, completely undermining any other issues politicians may be addressing. People may put pressure on politicians to be perfect with all their views or lean to one specific side. A democrat has to have completely democratic views on every single issue or else they are not a good politician.
“Someone agrees with someone else 99% of the time but there might be one issue that for a collection of individuals is a dealbreaker…People think ‘Well if I want a candidate who’s really principled then I want someone who is ideologically pure,” Murphy said.
People also tend to hold on to their values, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it can become detrimental. If people do not allow for willingness to argue or intake contrasting opinions, it will increase their closed mindedness. This will then change the political candidates they support and trap them in an endless cycle.
“Its these people who would say to themselves, ‘Well I’ve compromised my values enough in the past by voting for someone I have agreed with 80% or 90% when they might not embrace my particular issue position so therefore, I feel so strongly about this [Issue] that I am not going to betray my values,” Murphy said.
Purity Politics in the 2024 Election:
In the 2024 election, the concept of purity politics was prominent as voters viewed both candidates as impure. Despite one candidate having more flaws than the other, even the smallest issue made people withhold their support.
“In 2024, a lot of young people were very motivated by the issue involving Gaza and in the end they did not care about all the [good] things the Biden Administration had done…in the end, it was the Biden Administration providing aid to the Israelis. Even though the other candidate wouldn’t have been any more favorable to the Gazians if elected, they withheld their support from Harris,” Murphy said.
The conflict with Gaza and Israel had been gaining a lot of attention during the time of the elections. As Murphy explained, many young voters, especially Gen-Z, were advocating for U.S. support towards Gaza.
While the Trump administration openly supported Israel, saying they needed to finish the problem, the Biden administration reaffirmed Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas while simultaneously pushing for humanitarian aid to be delivered to civilians in Gaza. Despite one party being more ethically correct on different topics, voters focused on the fact that both of them ultimately aligned with Israel militarily and diplomatically, leading young voters to withhold their support from either party.
How it affects movements and progression:
Purity in politics has a huge effect on movements and progression. It can either make or break a movement. If the majority of society deems something as impure, it will turn against it.
“It weakens its effectiveness. People would get the attitude that they feel so strongly about this issue and won’t accept any compromise. It makes a lot of people see those individuals supporting that issue or cause as on the fringe,” Murphy said.
What is right and wrong starts to get blurred. Instead, people become polarized. If you do not agree with their opinion, you cannot stand with them. This leaves for no room to argue or negotiate in politics, leading to far extreme options.
“We are in an era of polarization and very polarized politics. Years ago, there were a lot of people who were modernists or centrist, people who were willing to negotiate or weld a deal,” Murphy said.
Additionally, social media has added to this level of polarization. When people post on social media, comments tend to lead towards one way or another. Then when there is discourse, typically the person disagreeing with a certain topic will get dog-piled on by more people. Instead of having civil debate, people start to polarize each other even more.
“That sentiment in favor of compromise is looked down upon today, typically in social media,” Murphy said.
So, the next time you are on social media remember to be open minded. At the same time, remember that candidates are never going to be pure and perfect by societal standards so conduct extensive research. Now, more than ever, it is important to understand what politicians are planning for your future and the policies that they stand for.
