A universe of MAGA hats

The MAGA hat will be 10 years old next summer, but its continued popularity among Trump supporters shows that the campaign still finds value in its most famous merch. Trump first wore a MAGA hat in summer 2015 when he announced his candidacy. His son-in-law, Jared Kushner, wrote in his memoir that the campaign eventually sold as much as $80,000 worth of hats a day in 2016.

By Election Day 2016, Trump’s campaign sold the hat in just three styles: red, white, and camouflage. By 2020, that number had grown to nine different styles. By then, Trump had gone all-in on hats with a “Keep America Great” hat for Trump’s short-lived 2020 slogan, as well as MAGA hats that just had the initials instead of writing out the full slogan. There were “MAGA Mama” hats and hats that said make “Farmers” and “Space” great again. There have been limited-edition holiday editions for Easter, Christmas, and Halloween. (The campaign did not reply to a request for comment on its hat strategy.)

The political-branding lifespan

The shelf life of a successful two-time presidential campaign brand is about six years, if you consider candidates typically announce their campaign the year before an election and run for reelection five years later. For Trump, who’s been running for president for nearly a decade now, the longtime visual markers of his campaign—from the red hats and the long red tie to his boxy campaign logo—are ancient in political-branding years.