Wisconsin governor Wisconsin governor Scott Walker has officially announced that he is running for the Republican nomination for President. This follows months of strong indicators of his intention to run with events in places like Iowa and New Hampshire, and trips overseas to meet with international leaders.
This presidential race displays how politicians have been unofficially promoting their platform while holding onto the tradition of an official announcement. Marquette University political science professor Julia Azari points out that with so many candidates declaring their bid for the presidency, many of these announcements are seen as inauthentic displays of pomp and circumstance.
"It really reinforces this idea that there's a set of formal things that happen in politics that are increasingly theatrical, increasingly scripted, and increasingly phony," says Azari.
With over a dozen candidates with their hats in the ring, Azari comments that Walker will need to use his record as governor to set him apart from the other Republicans.
"He's portrayed as someone who's really kind of a political mover and shaker at a time when a lot of people see politics as not really getting things done, and we have a stasis at the national level," says Azari.
