Identity Marketing During the 2021 Canadian Federal Election

This chapter addresses the identity marketing strategies of candidates during the 2021 Canadian federal election. Analysing official biographies, we identify the strategies that candidates used to address the immigration status of themselves or their families. We asked the following research questions: How do candidates use immigration in their political marketing? What role do direct and indirect appeals to identity play in how candidates promote themselves? Fuelled by our work on mediatization and personalization of candidates, we take a renewed look at political marketing practices during an election campaign and focus in particular on the under-research dimensions of identity-based uses of political communications in the Canadian context. Overall, our findings reveal that challengers use their immigration stories to demonstrate a commitment to community and country, while incumbents, high-profile individuals, and second- or third-generation Canadians downplay their immigration background in favour of emphasizing their skills and qualifications.