Why do the parties have their chosen logoes?

[Tigers!]

Saw a graphic on the news in Australia and noted that the Dems have a donkey (that it what it looks like on the screen to me) and the Repubs have an elephant.
When were those creatures chosen and why those particular creatures?

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

Saw a graphic on the news in Australia and noted that the Dems have a donkey (that it what it looks like on the screen to me) and the Repubs have an elephant.
When were those creatures chosen and why those particular creatures?

This goes back to a fable from Aesop. A donkey found a lion skin, left by a hunter on fence to dry. He put the skin on and went off to play games. He scared the goat who ran off in a panic because he was scared of lions. He scared a dog, and other animals. Until he ran up to the elephant to scare him. The elephant picked up the donkey with his trunk, dashed him to the ground and trampled the foolish donkey to death. The moral, a lion skin does not make a lion.

This was featured in a political cartoon making fun of the political ambitions of the Democratic party against the Republicans early in the history of these two parties.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-the-parties-got-their-animal-symbols/

 

[Tigers!]

Saw a graphic on the news in Australia and noted that the Dems have a donkey (that it what it looks like on the screen to me) and the Repubs have an elephant.
When were those creatures chosen and why those particular creatures?

This goes back to a fable from Aesop. A donkey found a lion skin, left by a hunter on fence to dry. He put the skin on and went off to play games. He scared the goat who ran off in a panic because he was scared of lions. He scared a dog, and other animals. Until he ran up to the elephant to scare him. The elephant picked up the donkey with his trunk, dashed him to the ground and trampled the foolish donkey to death. The moral, a lion skin does not make a lion.

This was featured in a political cartoon making fun of the political ambitions of the Democratic party against the Republicans early in the history of these two parties.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-the-parties-got-their-animal-symbols/

It seems that the connotations of donkeys with foolishness don't apply in the US. No political party in Australia would dare use a donkey as its logo or mascot.

In Australia numbering your ballot from top to bottom starting with 1 and sequentially to N is called 'donkey voting'.

- - - Updated - - -

Saw a graphic on the news in Australia and noted that the Dems have a donkey (that it what it looks like on the screen to me) and the Repubs have an elephant.
When were those creatures chosen and why those particular creatures?

This goes back to a fable from Aesop. A donkey found a lion skin, left by a hunter on fence to dry. He put the skin on and went off to play games. He scared the goat who ran off in a panic because he was scared of lions. He scared a dog, and other animals. Until he ran up to the elephant to scare him. The elephant picked up the donkey with his trunk, dashed him to the ground and trampled the foolish donkey to death. The moral, a lion skin does not make a lion.

This was featured in a political cartoon making fun of the political ambitions of the Democratic party against the Republicans early in the history of these two parties.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-the-parties-got-their-animal-symbols/

Thank you

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

According to the link I provided, Andrew Jackson was called a Jackass and the epithet kind of stuck, So he adopted it as an unoffical symbol to defang the named calling. From there it became a lampoon by cartoonist Nash. So yeah, it wasn't a compliment when applied to Jackson.

Wikipedia
The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Democratic Party was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active political party.

Hence to connection of Jackasses,, Jackson, the Democratic party and donkeys. A convoluted set of in jokes and rough politics.

 

[Sarpedon]

The only american political party that chose its animal logo was the short lived "Bull Moose" party. I wish they had stuck around.

 

[Jolly_Penguin]

In Canada we had the Rhinoceros party from the 1960s to the 1990s. They wanted to repeal the law of gravity.

https://www.macleans.ca/society/14-weird-platform-promises-from-the-now-defunct-rhinoceros-party/

It was a joke, but it actually got on the ballot and got some votes. In 1980 it got 2.43% of the vote in the ridings it had candidates.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinoceros_Party_of_Canada_(1963–93)#Electoral_record

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

In 1968, we had the Youth International Party, the Yippies. who ran a pig named Pigasus for the President on the United States.

 

[Deepak]

In Canada we had the Rhinoceros party from the 1960s to the 1990s. They wanted to repeal the law of gravity.

https://www.macleans.ca/society/14-weird-platform-promises-from-the-now-defunct-rhinoceros-party/

It was a joke, but it actually got on the ballot and got some votes. In 1980 it got 2.43% of the vote in the ridings it had candidates.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinoceros_Party_of_Canada_(1963–93)#Electoral_record

Personally I'm in favor of repealing these sorts of job killing laws - just imagine how much growth we could have in the aerospace industry if we did it.

 

[Elixir]

In 1968, we had the Youth International Party, the Yippies. who ran a pig named Pigasus for the President on the United States.

View attachment 18553

And here we are, 50 years hence and we do in fact have a pig for a president.
Tip of the hat to the prescience of Youth.

 

[Gun Nut]

LOL... didn't know the history... but it figures.

 

[GenesisNemesis]

Elephants are widely known for their fear of donkeys. Similarly, donkeys are widely known for their fear of elephants.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

In 1968, we had the Youth International Party, the Yippies. who ran a pig named Pigasus for the President on the United States.

View attachment 18553

And here we are, 50 years hence and we do in fact have a pig for a president.
Tip of the hat to the prescience of Youth.

You are insulting pigs!

 

[lpetrich]

I've never heard of elephants and donkeys having a special fear of each other.

Election 101:How did the Republican and Democratic parties get their animal symbols? - HISTORY explains their origin.

For Democrats, it was Andrew Jackson getting called a jackass. He reportedly found it funny.

The Republican Party was formed in 1854 and six years later Abraham Lincoln became its first member elected to the White House. An image of an elephant was featured as a Republican symbol in at least one political cartoon and a newspaper illustration during the Civil War (when “seeing the elephant” was an expression used by soldiers to mean experiencing combat) ...

But it was political cartoonist Thomas Nast who popularized these party symbols, in the 1870's.

 

[Patooka]

For Democrats, it was Andrew Jackson getting called a jackass. He reportedly found it funny.

Considering the amount of people Andrew Jackson challenged to a duel, he doesn't strike me as a guy who had much of a sense of humour. Unless he was like an 18th-19th century Neegan.

 

[Elixir]

Elephants are widely known for their fear of donkeys. Similarly, donkeys are widely known for their fear of elephants.

I thought elephants were only scared of barefoot Latinos when they get close - you know, like a thousand miles away?

 

[GenesisNemesis]

I've never heard of elephants and donkeys having a special fear of each other.

It was sarcasm.

 

[Opoponax]

Animals with huge dicks. That's what it's all about. The bigger the animal's dick, the stronger the party.

I propose to start a new party with the blue whale as its mascot. We'll win everything.